GLUCOSE, FASTING (F) AND POST MEAL (PP)

Blood glucose / sugar is the main energy giving source in your body. It comes from the food you eat and is carried by blood to all the cells to use for its various functions. If sugar rises in your blood, you suffer from Diabetes which can be Type 1 or Type 2 or Prediabetes. A reading of 126 mg/dL in a fasting state or greater than 200 mg/dL after 2 hours of eating or glucose drink is considered diabetic. If your values are between 100 to 125 mg/dL, you are considered to be prediabetic. You must test your blood glucose levels regularly if you are above 35 years of age; body mass index is higher than 25; women with diabetes during pregnancy; suffer from prediabetes. This test is useful to monitor the effect of diabetes medications; identify blood sugar levels that are high or low; track your progress in reaching your overall treatment goals; learn how diet and exercise affect blood sugar levels; understand how other factors, such as illness or stress affect blood sugar levels. Glucose estimation 2 hours post meal / post prandial (PP) is an independent risk factor for the development of diabetic complications. It is a response to diet intake and represents a fluctuation from basal glucose level. Postmeal glucose level more than 140 mg/dL may be associated with a higher frequency of diabetic complications. In a known diabetic patient, high PP value is associated with high insulin levels which may increase the risk of a heart attack.