Sugar tends to be misunderstood. That may sound like an odd thing to say, but what mean by it is that more than a few people will still think that the only way your blood sugar is going to be higher is if you’ve consumed sugar. Well obviously that’s not the way it works. Much of what we eat is converted into sugars by the body through the digestive process, and so long story short you can and will raise your blood sugar and even if you’re eating foods that don’t contain refined sugar. It doesn’t have to be sweet in order for you to be pushing your blood glucose up, but what is a normal blood sugar level immediately after eating?
Normal blood sugar right after eating is between 70mg /dl – 140mg / dl. People with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes are the ones who will need to be taking note of this and making sure their diabetes medication is working well enough to keep them in range. Taking insulin or an oral diabetes medication like Ozempic or Jardiance isn’t going to be the be-all end-all solution though. Some diabetics don’t need insulin, but all of them will need to be more mindful of what they eat and there are many suggested diets for people with diabetes. It’s never easy to change long-established habits, but you may need to eat differently when you understand what is a normal blood sugar level immediately after eating.
We certainly get that, but the risks from unchecked diabetes are pretty darn serious ones and even at a more everyday level having prolonged high blood sugar can sap your energy levels and cause you to have nerve problems that can be anywhere from a nuisance to interfering with the proper function of your fingers. Staying ahead of these possibilities is about knowing what is a normal blood sugar level immediately after eating, and staying within that number as best you can. Quick mention here though that knowing your resting blood sugar level will also be important.
Your doctor will lay all of this out in simple terms if you’re a new diabetic, and from there it’s up to you to do what’s required to manage diabetes effectively. Again, it’s not easy to make some of the changes required for you but the one plus is there are more than a few technological and other kinds of advantages that can benefit people with diabetes these days. We’ll get to those, but let’s dig more into what is a normal blood sugar level immediately after eating.
At the start here the talk was about how it doesn’t have to be sugar itself to raise blood sugar levels. Here in North America and Europe people love to eat bread, pasta, and all sorts of other foods that are carbohydrates and there is no single type of food that is more naturally and easily turned into sugar by the body than carbs. So if you are eating a pair of bagels every morning for breakfast and then a full a lumberjack sandwich for lunch it may be a case that not only are you overeating, but you are also getting way to many carbs in your diet and that may mean your blood sugar is too high.
If you’re a young person with a high metabolism you may be able to eat whatever you like and never need to wonder about what is a normal blood sugar level immediately after eating. For others who are older and have a slowed metabolism and are either diabetic or prediabetic, it’s going to be a much different story. They will be the ones monitoring blood glucose and working to stay in that 70mg /dl – 140mg / dl range.
Most diabetics need to monitor their blood sugar on a daily basis, and when it comes to fasting blood sugar levels people often learn over time what their score will be like based on how they’ve eaten. If you’re smart about diabetes management you’ll adjust portion sizes or do whatever it is you need to do. Being smart can also mean taking advantage of what is out there for you, and the best example of modern technology for diabetics are the digital blood glucose monitors that make it much easier and cleaner to take a blood glucose sample.
We’ll conclude our discussion around what is a normal blood sugar level immediately after eating by talking about one example of new technology for diabetes management that may be rather amazing if it ends up becoming available. There has been research into smart contact lenses that can monitor blood glucose levels through human tears. That would be some amazing tech right there!