Do I have diabetes?

Q: I am a 44 years old man whose blood sugar values are: fasting blood sugar 89 mg/dl (normal) and post-prandial sugar 109 mg/dl (normal). However my HbA1c was 6.9%. Also my mean blood glucose (60 days) is 169 mg/dl. I have a family history of diabetes. Am I diabetic?

A:Even though your HbA1C seems to be a little high, HbA1C is not considered a diagnostic test for diabetes and there are different normal reference ranges in different labs.

At this time I would suggest that you have a 2-hour glucose tolerance test in a lab. If blood glucose at 2-hour is equal or more than 200 mg/dl, it will be considered indicative of diabetes while a value between 140-199 mg/dl would be considered impaired glucose tolerance (borderline diabetes). Value <140 mg/dl at 2-hour is normal.

Lifestyle modification, exercise and dietary changes should be considered the first step.