HBA1C Blood Test
For individuals without diabetes, a normal HBA1C Blood Test result ranges from 4% to 5.6%. Levels between 5.7% and 6.4% indicate a higher risk of developing diabetes, while a result of 6.5% or higher confirms diabetes.
WHAT IS HBA1C?
The term HbA1c refers to glycated hemoglobin. It develops when hemoglobin, a protein within red blood cells that carries oxygen throughout your body, joins with glucose in the blood, becoming ‘glycated’.
By getting the HBA1C Test, clinicians can get an overall picture of what our average blood sugar levels have been over weeks/months.
When the body processes sugar, glucose in the bloodstream naturally attaches to hemoglobin.
The amount of glucose that combines with this protein is directly proportional to the total amount of sugar that is in your system at that time.
Because red blood cells in the human body survive for 8-12 weeks before renewal, measuring glycated hemoglobin (or HbA1c) can be used to reflect average blood glucose levels over that duration, providing a useful longer-term gauge of blood glucose control.
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