Understanding Healthy Blood Glucose Levels: Ranges & Tests

Blood glucose levels are the amount of sugar in the bloodstream. You can check your glucose levels with a glucometer, a glucose meter. You can test your blood sugar level at the doctor's office with a fasting test or an A1C test. The A1C test is a 3-month average of glucose levels. The fasting test is the glucose level after 14 hours without food. Each test indicates whether you have healthy glucose levels.

Fasting Levels

• A healthy glucose level after fasting for 14 hours is between 70 and 100 mg/dL, or milligrams per deciliter.

A1C Levels

• A healthy level is 4 to 6 percent (80 to 120 mg/dL). The target level for a person with diabetes is 7 percent or less (150 mg/dL or less).

Random Testing

• Testing with a glucometer is random testing. Before breakfast, a normal range is 80 to 120 mg/dL. Normal ranges after eating are 140 and below.

Lows

• Blood sugars below 70 are low. A blood sugar level of 40 for women is serious, and a blood sugar level of 50 for men is serious.

Sugar Spikes

• Illness, stress and high-sugar-content foods can cause sugar spikes for people who are not diabetic. The true test for diabetes is the fasting test and the A1C test.