a1c

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Permalink Reply by Cathy Jacobson on November 29, 2009 at 11:33pm

I would be very happy with a 7.0 right now. But my goal is to be under 6.5....with cortisone shots for my knees that is often times very hard, and I have to do some pretty high level planning of dates etc. Why do you ask?

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Permalink Reply by msann59 on November 30, 2009 at 9:34pm

hey, just wanted to know how everyone else ddoing, and what they are doing, just getting all infro i can,thanks

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Permalink Reply by Joe_h on November 30, 2009 at 7:16am

my 'A' goal is go under 6.5 as well. I'm currently at 6.7 and have been here for a long while

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Permalink Reply by Terry on November 30, 2009 at 12:13pm

I've been on a insulin pump since the first part of September. My a1c on the 23rd of November was 6.3

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Permalink Reply by Daniel Stamey on November 30, 2009 at 12:18pm

After 7 weeks, I have managed to go from 11.1 on Oct 8 to 7.1 on 11/24. I used the Bayer Home A1C test since I won't have my official A1C done until the end of December or early January. It is clear that some of my 300+ BG readings from September are still impacting my A1C but another month of averaging around 110-112 should get me below the 6% range which is my goal. I needed to see that my A1C was in fact improving based on my meter readings. I test 6-7 times a day so I feel I have very good control and know exactly what I can eat. I rarely go above 130 after one hour and am always below 120 after two hours. My fasting BG in the morning are usually in the low 100s.

I stick pretty close to the 30g of carbs a day per Dr. B. and it has made all the difference in the world. I have lost 25 lbs and feel great. My blood pressure, which was borderline hypertensive in early October is back to normal (low 120s/80s!) and my heart rate, which was usually in the 90s and 100s at rest is regularly in the 70s now. And fortunately, no needs for meds. Doing this with just diet and exercise.

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Permalink Reply by bsc on December 1, 2009 at 7:33am

I have come to the conclusion after a couple years of having an HbA1c of under 6.5% that I need to be more aggressive. Even at that level, I am now having diabetic neuropathy emerge and I doubt I will ever be cured of periodontal problems with elevated blood sugars. My target now is < 6%. This personal target eventually caused a schism with my GP (who wanted me at 7-8%). I now see an endo who at least concurs with my goal although I expect we will now spend another year or two or three mucking around with cocktails of drugs in a valiant attempt to keep my blood sugar down. I did have an HbA1c of 5.7% in September, but my last reading in Novermber was back up to 6% and I expect a further rise on my next test. I will push my endo to help me treat more aggressively.

In truth, everyone is different. If you could get your HbA1c down to 5% with no effort, then you could virtually eliminate negative consequences. But we all know that getting down to 5% can involve some very serious effort, complicating your life and making you pretty unhappy. It is all a compromise. Data from large studies such as DCCT clearly showed that complications escalated at HbA1c over 7%. Much of the risk of complications is reduced at levels less than 7%, but not all risk and more recent studies (i.e. EPIC/Norfolk) show further reductions in risks all the way down to an HbA1c of 5.5%. There may be some people that as individuals are highly resistant to complications, but I am not. You need to make your own decisions, balancing the reduction in further risks by achieving a lower HbA1c against the negatives of what it takes to get there. Many people do find that achieving a HbA1c of below 6-6.5% is readily achievable.

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Permalink Reply by Zoe on December 1, 2009 at 7:50am

I just got a (Walgreen's free aka home test) A1C at 6.5, down from 7.2 in May. Hooray! But since 6.5 is still an average of 154 and studies show complications can occur at 140, I want to get closer to 6.0. I too weigh out the cost in life adjustment vs good numbers. I don't know if I will ever get down to 5.0, but 6.0 is my goal for now. For various reasons I'm not willing to lower my carbs any further. I eat a moderate 100 carbs more or less per day. I do have PLENTY of leeway in the excercise department. ::::peering out the back door at my new (used) bike chained to the stairs::::

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Permalink Reply by Helmut on December 9, 2009 at 10:24am

"If you could get your HbA1c down to 5% with no effort, then you could virtually eliminate negative consequences. But we all know that getting down to 5% can involve some very serious effort, complicating your life and making you pretty unhappy."

bsc,

I put in serious effort and all I was able to get down to was 5.8%. Then I got the DexCom 7+. Now my A1C is 5.2% with less effort and severe highs and lows virtually eliminated. This is the first time ever that I was able to improve my bg control while reducing both effort and risk.

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Permalink Reply by bsc on December 9, 2009 at 11:27am

Almost no full blown type 2s would have any hope of getting down to 5% without insulin. If I eat ZERO carbs, I would not be able to get below 6% without medication. Heck, I might not even be able to keep it below 7%. Even with insulin, not everyone can readily get down to 5% without serious risks of hypos. I think you deserve a pat on the back for achieving a 5.2%. In most cases, an insulin dependent diabetic can only achieve those levels through diligent carb counting and constant attention to your pump and glucose levels. Not exactly a carefree day.

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Permalink Reply by Helmut on December 9, 2009 at 4:28pm

I understand. I had many not so carefree days because of complications. All I was thinking was: "I wish I could turn back time and control my bg better so that I wouldn't have complications.". After about 2 years of tightened control some damage reversed. I am very lucky. I don't want to blow the second chance that I was given.

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Permalink Reply by Barrie Platt on December 8, 2009 at 1:12pm

I am down from a high of 9.3 to a current reading of 6.6. Goal is to be below 6.0 in March when I have new labwork.

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Permalink Reply by Jeremy on December 9, 2009 at 10:06am

My last a1c was 7.1. I am the worst when it comes to keeping a tight grip on my bgl.

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