Random Blood Sugar Levels - All you want to know!!
Feeling weak,
stressed, feeling hungry all the time, worried about your blood sugar levels?
This article covers everything you want to know about random blood sugar
levels.
With the escalating hectic life of individuals, the eating habits of many of us is changing at a rapid speed.
But, few of us know that what we eat is directly
proportional to the growth of our cells. The human body is comprised of cells and
they need the energy to function normally. They get this energy from the food we
consume, which is broken down in glucose - the basic unit of carbohydrates.
Blood Sugar Level
- What exactly it is?
Now, let us come to the terminology blood sugar level -
Blood sugar level or blood glucose level is the concentration of glucose
present in the blood of humans. In layman's language, we all need the energy to perform
our basic routine life and sometimes, the tasks or set of activities which we
have planned for us. Thus, the food we consume is directly proportional to the
level or the concentration of sugar in our blood. How? Very Simple - our bodies
digest the food we eat in the stomach and when the stomach digests food, the
carbohydrate in the food is broken down in its simplest form that is glucose.
This glucose is stored in the skeletal muscle and liver cells in the form of
glycogen which is a long-chain form of carbohydrate molecules and is the primary
source of energy.
The glucose flows in the bloodstream at a certain
concentration and provide energy to the body cells.
In humans, a blood glucose level of four grams, or about
a teaspoon in the blood of a 70 kilogram or 150lb, is critical for normal
function in a number of tissues and just for information, the human brain
consumes approximately 60% of blood glucose.
How blood sugar the level is calculated?
Blood sugar levels never remain constant in a day. For
example, the blood sugar levels are usually the lowest in the morning, before
the first meal of the day, and rise after meals for an hour or two. The unit of a measure of sugar concentration is millimole, which in simple terms is the concentration of chemical species in particular of a solute in a solution or
the amount of substance per unit volume of solution.
For a majority of healthy individuals, normal blood sugar
levels are as follows:
§
Between 4.0 to 5.4 mmol/L (72 to 99 mg/dL)
when fasting
§
Up to 7.8 mmol/L (140 mg/dL) 2 hours after
eating
These levels generally vary around the time when before
eating and after eating, but for a normal healthy individual, it should be below
11.1 mmol or below 200 mg/dL.
In adults without diabetes, glucose levels are managed or
regulated through the actions of our internal
Insulin
which is a hormone produced in the pancreas. A healthy adult's blood sugar
level though tested randomly will always be below 200 mg/dL even if they:
·
varied their diet
·
experienced stress
·
ate at different times of the day
Blood sugar levels outside the normal range may be an
indicator of a medical condition. A persistently high level is referred to as
hyperglycemia and low levels are referred to as hypoglycemia. Diabetes, a very
common anomaly of the blood sugar level, is characterized by persistent
hyperglycemia and is the most prominent disease related to the failure of blood
sugar regulation.
Hyperglycemia can easily be stated as high blood sugar
and hypoglycemia is stated as low blood sugar.
The blood sugar is considered high if it shoots above 200
mg/dL and low blood sugar level is considered when it drops below 70 mg/dL.
Am I Diabetic?
So, if we talk about abnormal sugar levels or
uncontrolled sugar levels we are generally referring to the term diabetes. A
persistent elevation in blood glucose level leads to glucose toxicity that
ultimately contributes to the improper functioning of body cells and is referred to
as complication of diabetes. Diabetic patients do not make enough insulin to
regulate blood sugar levels.
The variation of the blood sugar levels is seen
comparatively high in diabetic patients over a course of a day and the levels
are beyond the normal scope of regulated levels. If random tests are taken,
they too will vary widely.
Usually, having high blood glucose is a definite sign
that your body is not functioning properly and if this high blood glucose is
not treated well, it can lead to serious health complications.
Symptoms of
Varying Blood sugar levels:
·
Severe Headache
·
Fatigue
·
Vision problems
·
Chest pain
·
Difficulty breathing
·
Irregular heartbeat
·
Blood in urine
·
sudden mood changes
·
hunger
·
dizziness
·
sweating
·
rapid heartbeat
·
kidney disease
All of these symptoms occur when blood sugar level
increases a normal range or decreases a normal range. Although, these symptoms
appear scary and are very common in this era's generation and that is very
obvious due to unhealthy eating habits and unapt routine life.
A random test is one that is performed outside the normal
testing schedule. These random glucose levels should always be under the above-said range, any deviation is a sign of worry. By testing your blood sugar
randomly, you can keep a note of it and manage your health accordingly.
How often should I
visit a doctor to track my random sugar levels?
If you do not feel any of the symptoms mentioned
above, then it is not a point of worry. But, in some cases, people develop the
symptoms at a later stage and often with age. Thus, it is recommended that
every individual should periodically test the sugar levels on fasting and after
eating to keep a track of the functioning of their body.
Am I prone to
other diseases if I have abnormal sugar levels?
Abnormal sugar levels is a definite cause for worry.
Glucose reaching the blood cell is a prime requirement for them to function
properly if this prime requirement is not met, it may affect the whole body
and its functioning. High blood sugar level weakens the patient immune system
and directly or indirectly causes pressure in the blood vessels and affects the
cardiovascular functions of a body. This includes artery disease with chest
pain, heart attack, damaged kidneys, blurred vision, cracked skin, irregular
urination, urinal diseases, and many more.
As said affirmatively, anything more than required always
welcomes unhealthy consequences. Thus, we should always ensure that the random testing
on the blood sugar levels that vary randomly in the due course of the day should
lie under the normal levels for a healthy functioning lifestyle.
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