14
LIVING
Know your numbers
Do you struggle to figure out all the figures that
are important for keeping you healthy when you
have diabetes? Susannah Hickling offers a quickglance guide.
Blood pressure
130/80
The holy trinity of health
measurements for someone who
has diabetes is blood pressure,
cholesterol and HbA1c. These are the
three treatment targets (3Ts or TTTs)
that form part of your annual review.
For most people without diabetes
the target blood pressure (in other
words, it should be lower) is 120/80
mmHg but, for adults with diabetes,
the European Society of Cardiology
recently lowered the threshold for
medication to 130/80 if three months
of lifestyle interventions haven't
worked; doctors have previously
aimed to keep blood pressure below
140/90 for people with diabetes
without kidney disease.
The top figure, the systolic, shows
the maximum force your heart uses
to pump blood around your body,
whereas the lower diastolic figure
shows the minimum force. It's
important to monitor blood pressure
when you have diabetes, because
the condition increases your risk of
cardiovascular problems, such as
heart disease and stroke.
Cholesterol
4 mmol/l
This is the target for total
cholesterol, with "bad" low-density
lipoprotein (LDL) to be kept below
2 mmol/l and so-called "good"
high-density lipoprotein (HDL) to
be at least 1 mmol/l for men and
1.2 for women. A blood test for
cholesterol forms part of your annual
diabetes review.
High levels of LDL can cause
a fatty build-up in your arteries,
narrowing and hardening them, and
putting you at increased risk of heart
attack and stroke. Meanwhile high
levels of HDL can bring your risk
down as it takes excess cholesterol
back to the liver, which then gets rid
of it.
HbA1c
48 mmol/mol
This figure, also measured as 6.5%, is
the ideal average blood glucose level
over the past two to three months if
you have diabetes. HbA1c is glycated
haemoglobin, which is made when
glucose sticks to your red blood
cells. These are active for two to
three months, hence the need for a
quarterly reading. If your HbA1c is
high, you have an increased risk of
developing complications. It forms
part of your annual diabetes review,
but could be measured more often
if high.
Blood glucose level
4-7 mmol/l (before a meal)
Less than 8.5-9 (after
a meal)
5 (to drive)
Finger prick testing, your flash
glucose monitor or continuous
glucose monitor (CGM) will help
you keep an eye on your levels and
the quirks of your own personal
condition. Your healthcare team will