I am recently diagnosed as being a type II diabetic. I am still trying to get a handle on the mechanics of things. When is the best time to test, before or after a meal? What kind of numbers should I be looking for when I test?

DB -

There are a couple of good organizations that you can search for to get the numbers. The American Diabetes Association and the Joslin Institute are their names.

Depending on the time of day, I have posted the numbers for a non-diabetic and then a diabetic below. For the first couple of weeks, you might want to test 4 times a day to see how your meds are affecting your glucose level. After 2 months on the meds, it would probably be a good idea to get a HbA1c blood test at your doctor's office to see how well you have your diabetes under control.

wb

Joslin Institute Numbers

Here are their suggested blood glucose numbers:

Time of Check | Goal blood glucose ranges for non-diabetic | Goal blood glucose ranges for diabetics

Before Breakfast (fasting)...........less than 110........................90 - 130

Before lunch, supper and snack...less than 110........................90 - 130

Two hours ( * ) after meals ............less than 140 .............less than 160

Bedtime................................. .less than 120 ........................110 - 150

* - Two hours after the time you start eating the meal.
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A1C (also called Glycosylated hemoglobin A1c, HbA1c or glycohemoglobin A1c)

Less than 6% for non-diabetics, less than 7% for diabetics

It is important for a type 1 to test before meals, but being type 2, I never test before meals except for an occasional fasting test just before breakfast. I tested for a while at 1 hour just to see how high different foods would raise my blood sugar, but now I just test two hours after a meal. I set less than 120 as my goal at two hours. It is usually quite a bit lower than that. I see 160, 140 and 120 used as goals, but 120 seems best to me if you are trying to keep your A1c under 6.

Thanks for the info. It is really helpful. It has only been five weeks since I was diagnosed. Yesterday began the first week I am on a full course of medications (2-500mg tablets of metformin 2x a day). It looks like my blood glucose numbers are close to where they are supposed to be. I guess between the diet and medication, I am doing pretty good. The worst one was 187. Apparently, pizza doesn't work well for me. Thanks again.

Yes, thank you very much. Sorry I didn't see your post before i posted another post. They told me 100 -125 fasting could be pre-diabetic and needs to be watched and care taken.