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What is HbA1c Blood Test?
By pohheng | May 28, 2008
Haemoglobin (Hemoglobin) A1c test or HbA1c test is a blood test which shows the average blood glucose levels over a period of about 8 to 12 weeks or 2 to 3 months, which is the lifetime of a average red blood cell.
Haemoglobin is the colour pigment in the red blood cells that carries oxygen around the body. Glucose attaches to this pigment to make a “glycosylated haemoglobin” molecule called haemoglobin A1C or HbA1C. Therefore, the higher the haemoglobin A1C or HbA1c percentage, the higher the glucose in the blood.
The HbA1c results are normally expressed in percentage terms. Check the HbA1c test results (%) versus plasma blood glucose equivalents (mg/dl) here. Different labs will give you different guidelines for HbA1c levels but on general, a non-diabetic person’s HbA1c ideal results should be less than 5.5%. A level above 7% shows diabetes and levels between 5.5 to 6.9% are considered prediabetes.
The downside of HbA1c blood test is that since the results are the average reading, it can be misleading if your blood glucose control is really poor i.e. very high blood sugar levels (Hyperglycemia / Hyperglycaemia) AND very low blood sugar / glucose levels (Hypoglycemia / Hypoglycaemia).
Topics: Diabetes Overview, Others |