The Diagnosis, Danger, and Ways to Manage High Blood Sugar Levels

Disclaimer: Not Medical Advice. Opinions are my own.

In partnership with ​Function Health

Today's Newsletter at a Glance:

• What is Diabetes?

• Diabetes Diagnosis: Understanding the Biomarkers

• The Dangers of High Blood Sugar

• Tactics to Combat High Blood Sugar

Since 2000, diabetes rates have risen by nearly 50%.

Especially in the United States, the number of people living with high blood sugar is alarming.

In today's newsletter, we will cover the basics of diabetes, the dangers associated with living with the condition, and practical ways to manage your blood sugar levels.

What is Diabetes?

To begin, we should gain a clearer understanding of diabetes from a broader perspective.

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic medical condition in which the body struggles to regulate blood sugar (glucose) due to problems with insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas.

This occurs in two ways:

1. The body fails to generate any or sufficient insulin (Type 1 Diabetes)

2. The body doesn't properly utilize insulin (Type 2 Diabetes)

For today's newsletter, we will focus on the more common form of diabetes, type 2 diabetes.

Insulin's primary function is to remove glucose from the bloodstream and either use it or store it.

The problem with diabetes is that insulin can't properly do its job. Therefore, glucose levels remain elevated and stay in the bloodstream.

We will discuss why this is a problem.

Diabetes Diagnosis: Understanding the Biomarkers

Type 2 diabetes is often asymptomatic, particularly in the early stages.

This makes it challenging to recognize any warning signs or any symptoms that you may be prediabetic or diabetic.

In fact, 80% of people who are pre-diabetic don't know they are.

How can you find out if you have prediabetes or diabetes?

1. Fasting Plasma Glucose (FPG) - Diabetes: ≥ 126 mg/dL (after ≥8 hours of no caloric intake) - Confirm with a repeat test unless symptomatic

2. Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT) - Give 75g glucose, measure at 2 hours - Diabetes: 2-hour plasma glucose ≥ 200 mg/dL

3. Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) - Prediabetes: A1c: 5.7%-6.4% - Diabetes: A1c: >6.4%

Hemoglobin A1c gives you a 3-month snapshot of how well your blood glucose has been controlled.

A1c measures the percentage of glycated hemoglobin — hemoglobin in red blood cells that has glucose attached to it.

Since red blood cells live ~120 days, A1c reflects your average blood glucose over the past 2–3 months.

The Dangers of Chronically Elevated Blood Sugar

Why is diabetes so dangerous?

When our bodies cannot effectively use or store glucose, it remains in the bloodstream, and if elevated over time, it can cause hyperglycemia.

High blood sugar can damage blood vessels, nerves, and organs silently (often without symptoms) over time.

Elevated glucose levels can lead to the formation of harmful byproducts, such as Advanced Glycation End-Products (AGEs). These biochemical byproducts cause inflammation, oxidative stress, and damage to our bodies.

It's so dangerous that patients who have type 2 diabetes have approximately 2-4 times increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

So what can we do to avoid this?

How to Manage Your Blood Sugar

In most cases, type 2 diabetes is a problem of overconsumption.

We consume more food and sugars than our body knows what to do with.

Here are the major pillars to combat this:

1. Weight Loss - losing 10%-15% of your body weight can dramatically reduce insulin resistance

2. Avoid High-Carb Diets & Excess Sugar - again, the primary culprit here is too much glucose in circulation; avoid consuming it in the first place.

3. Resistance & Cardiovascular training - aside from aiding in weight loss, muscle helps the body absorb glucose from the bloodstream.

4. Proper Sleep Hygiene - poor sleep leads to increased levels of cortisol, which contributes to insulin resistance.

In certain circumstances, medications such as Metformin and GLP-1 agonists may be suitable for regulating appetite and blood sugar levels.*

This is an ongoing battle.

I found myself among the 80% who were unaware that they had prediabetes.

Through lifestyle modifications and continuous glucose monitoring (CGM), I was able to drastically reduce my blood sugar levels and significantly lower my A1c.

Maintaining healthy blood sugar levels today does not guarantee that they will stay normal in the future.

If healthy habits slip, blood sugar can creep back up.

It's essential to find what works for you in the long term to maintain healthy blood sugar levels.

If You Don't Test, You Don't Know

True health ownership starts with knowledge.

Understanding which biomarkers are in range or, more importantly, out of range will help you personalize and create your own instruction manual.

​Function Health​ is an all-in-one health platform that starts with 100+ lab tests, including your A1c, fasting glucose, heart, hormones, liver, kidneys, thyroid, autoimmunity, cancer signals, toxins, and overall nutrients.

Function provides five times more bloodwork testing than standard primary care labs, which would cost you thousands of dollars out of pocket.

Function makes scheduling at 2,000 locations across the USA convenient and straightforward, with lab visits averaging only 15 minutes.

Once your results are in, you will receive a comprehensive summary written by Function's Clinical Team. Clinicians call you promptly if any urgent results arise.

After seeing your biomarkers and Function's insightful recommendations, you will have the confidence to take action and retest in the future to track your progress.

Join hundreds of thousands, including me, who use Function to take control of their health. ​Click here to get a $100 credit when you sign up for Function.​

Only the best,

Jeremy London, MD

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