Should I be worried?

[sdb41274]

My  year daughters grandmother nad a few other relatives have diabetes, they recently checked my daughters blood sugar and it was 205 they are saying that is way to high, they all have much drama and are sayng oh she has diabetes, do you think this is high, I amvery scared? Thanks you

[Mr_Gatorade]

If my child's blood sugar was 200 mg/dl, I'd carefully retest her blood.  If it were still over 200,  I'd drive her to the doctor or
to the hospital.

[JDRF-Team-BL]

You have already received some excellent advice but they were correct in saying that one test doesn't always indicate diabetes. They usually do a two blood test test for the diagnosis. This is a fasting blood sugar test from a predetermined time in the evening the night before the test, then they give you a drink with as many calories in it as in the average meal then check the blood sugar two hours later to see if the body is doing it's job. My test was 30 years ago and i still remember it: fasting 480 and two hour 660, which left the doctors no doubt.
i didn't know then either what was good or bad. But i have to say this that i have never regretted the diagnosis since i have taken better care of myself since then than i probably would have without the diagnosis. The diabetic diet is simply a healthy type diet that everyone should follow. And they want you as a diabetic to get a moderate amount of exercise during the week, moderation is the key, they don't expect muscle building so you start looking like governor Arnold from California.
i wish you good luck and conferring with a doctor is the best way to go, especially since i am not a doctor.
A psychiatrist who used to work at the VA hospital i used who left to go to the NIH in Washington wrote to me in an email that he has students who do research with him and he tells them i have had diabetes for a long time with few complications from diabetes and still am positive about it. This is because diabetes care is centered on the diabetic doing it with advice from a doctor. good luck, it can be lived with successfully, bret

[JDRF-Team-dm]

Dear sdb,
I am not a doctor, but a reading that is over 200 could indicate a problem. What I would like you to do is take LRS's advice to heart. She is one volunteer that the most experienced listen to.

It could be a spike after a meal, but the sooner you find out the better. Knowledge and power is everything. If it turns out that she has type 1 diabetes, we will help you with everything that we can with support and knowledge through JDRF. Please do not be afraid of this. Research and the knowledge that we have in controlling type 1 diabetes have come a very long way.

I look forward to a further posting with her results. Stay in touch.

Wishing the Best,

dm

[JDRF-Team-LRS]

Hello SDB,
I'm sure it's scary to get information like that.  We're long-time diabetics -- or caregivers for diabetic children -- not physicians here, so I encourage you callyour daughter's physician to discuss the findings with him/her.  It seems reasonable to take a few random blood tests & some fasting blood tests if you have access to the test equipment -- then keep a list of the day, time and readings to tell her doctor.  Just be **sure** to use a fresh lancet if you're using someone else's testing equipment.  

Depending on when the blood test was taken (fasting, right after a meal, 3-4 hours after eating) and other issues that may affect a person's blood sugar (other medications, illness, stress), the 200+ reading might be very high or it might explained by other, temporary things.

With diabetes in your family, it's important to be watchful of yourself and your children.

Here is a website from the American Diabetes Association, showing the ranges of "normal" "pre-diabetic" (a term used typically only with adult-onset diabetes), and "diabetic."
http://www.diabetes.org/pre-diabetes/pre-diabetes-symptoms.jsp  Please notice that the readings they give are *not* for a random test; they are either for a fasting (FPG - fasting plasma glucose) or an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT).

Good luck.  I hope you get good news, but if your daughter does have diabetes, but sure to check back here with specific questions and/or encouragement and support as you learn about treatments.