--- title: "Blood sugar numbers and tests, explained | GlucoseBench" description: "A1C, fasting glucose, prediabetes and low blood sugar: the numbers the CDC and the NIH use, and how they compare with what supplement labels claim." canonical: https://glucosebench.com/blood-sugar alternate_html: https://glucosebench.com/blood-sugar language: en-US last_updated: 2026-09-27 type: categoria --- # Blood sugar basics: numbers, tests and daily habits 1. [Home](https://glucosebench.com/) 2. Blood sugar basics These pages answer the questions people type after a lab result: what an A1C between 5.7% and 6.4% means, what counts as normal after a meal, when low blood sugar is an emergency, and what the CDC's prevention program asks you to change. The numbers come from the CDC, the NIH (NIDDK and NCCIH) and MedlinePlus, with the date we read them. Where a supplement label on this site makes a related promise, we put the promise next to the official number. Nothing here sells a product, and nothing here should change a prescription. ## Pages in this section Blood sugar basics ### [Artificial sweeteners and blood sugar: the FDA and the CDC, side by side](https://glucosebench.com/artificial-sweeteners-and-blood-sugar) Generally not, according to the FDA, which says sweeteners "generally will not raise blood sugar levels." Sucralose, the sweetener sold as Splenda, is one of six the FDA… Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Blood sugar after eating: the target with diabetes, and what the 2-hour lab test measures](https://glucosebench.com/blood-sugar-after-eating) If you have diabetes, the usual after-meal target is below 180 mg/dL: the CDC says one to two hours after a meal, and the NIH's diabetes institute (NIDDK) says about 2… Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Blood sugar spikes: the everyday triggers, the foods, and how you'd know](https://glucosebench.com/blood-sugar-spikes) None of the government pages we read, the CDC's included, puts a number on the word "spike." Food is the everyday driver: "Carbohydrates in the food you eat raise your… Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Blood sugar without a finger prick: the FDA warning on watches and rings](https://glucosebench.com/non-invasive-glucose-monitors) The FDA has not authorized, cleared, or approved any smartwatch or smart ring that measures or estimates blood glucose on its own, and in February 2024 it told people… Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Checking your blood sugar at home: the steps, the timing and a log worth keeping](https://glucosebench.com/check-blood-sugar-at-home) The CDC's steps for checking blood sugar at home: wash your hands with soap and warm water and dry them well, prick your finger with a lancet, put a small drop of blood… Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Eating for insulin resistance, and the other things that move it](https://glucosebench.com/insulin-resistance-diet) Neither the CDC nor the NIH's diabetes institute (NIDDK) prescribes a named "insulin resistance diet." The CDC's advice is a balanced diet "with non-starchy vegetables,… Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Eating with prediabetes: a plate borrowed from the CDC's diabetes advice](https://glucosebench.com/prediabetes-diet) The CDC's prediabetes page doesn't give a menu; it sets two targets: lose around 5% to 7% of your body weight if you have overweight, and get at least 150 minutes a week… Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Exercise to lower blood sugar: what happens during, after and overnight](https://glucosebench.com/exercise-and-blood-sugar) Physical activity usually brings blood sugar down: the CDC says that if you check before and after a walk, "you'll likely see a lower number after," and that activity… Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Fasting blood sugar: three cutoffs and one blood draw](https://glucosebench.com/fasting-blood-sugar) The CDC's cutoffs for fasting blood sugar: 99 mg/dL or below is normal, 100 to 125 mg/dL is prediabetes, and 126 mg/dL or above is diabetes. Read more Blood sugar basics ### [High blood sugar (hyperglycemia): the signs, and the readings that can't wait](https://glucosebench.com/high-blood-sugar) Hyperglycemia means high blood glucose; for most people with diabetes, the NIDDK says blood sugar is too high "when it is above 180 mg/dL." The usual signs are feeling… Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Insulin in your blood: what the test measures and what it misses](https://glucosebench.com/insulin-test) An insulin in blood test, often called a fasting insulin test, measures how much insulin is in a sample of your blood. Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Insulin resistance: the condition a symptom checklist can't find](https://glucosebench.com/insulin-resistance) Insulin resistance is "a condition in which your body doesn't respond to insulin the way it should," according to the NIH's diabetes institute (NIDDK). Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Is there a food that lowers blood sugar? What the CDC and NIH point to instead](https://glucosebench.com/foods-that-lower-blood-sugar) No food lowers blood sugar on its own. Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia): what to do in the first 15 minutes](https://glucosebench.com/low-blood-sugar) For most people with diabetes, blood sugar below 70 mg/dL is low, according to the CDC and the NIH; for people without diabetes, MedlinePlus says hypoglycemia is… Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Lowering an A1C: medicine, meals, movement and weight](https://glucosebench.com/how-to-lower-a1c) An A1C comes down the same way daily blood sugar does: diabetes medicine taken as prescribed, a meal plan, regular physical activity and, if you have overweight, some… Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Normal blood sugar levels, and why a diabetes target is a different number](https://glucosebench.com/blood-sugar-levels) For adults without diabetes, the CDC calls a fasting blood sugar of 99 mg/dL or below normal, 100 to 125 mg/dL prediabetes, and 126 mg/dL or above diabetes; an A1C below… Read more Blood sugar basics ### [PCOS and insulin resistance: why a diabetes test belongs on your list](https://glucosebench.com/insulin-resistance-and-pcos) Many women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) have insulin resistance: the body makes insulin but can't use it well, which raises the risk of type 2 diabetes. Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Prediabetes: a number worth acting on, usually without a symptom](https://glucosebench.com/prediabetes) Prediabetes means your blood sugar is higher than normal but not high enough for a type 2 diabetes diagnosis. Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Which blood test diagnoses diabetes? All four, compared](https://glucosebench.com/diabetes-tests) Type 2 diabetes and prediabetes are diagnosed with blood tests: the A1C, the fasting plasma glucose test, the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) and, when there are… Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Why your blood sugar is high in the morning, and how to find your own pattern](https://glucosebench.com/morning-blood-sugar) The CDC calls it the dawn phenomenon: "hormones tend to surge early in the morning, and for people with diabetes blood sugar can spike." Sleep counts too: the CDC says… Read more Blood sugar basics ### [Your A1C result, read against the NIH's cutoffs and the CDC's chart](https://glucosebench.com/a1c-levels) A normal A1C is below 5.7%. Read more --- ## GlucoseBench - GlucoseBench, published by Grupo Marfre Automação e Tecnologia (Contagem, Brazil) - Email: contact@glucosebench.com - Home: https://glucosebench.com/ - llms.txt: https://glucosebench.com/llms.txt · llms-full.txt: https://glucosebench.com/llms-full.txt · sitemap: https://glucosebench.com/sitemap.xml