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What is A1c? (A-one-C)

Published:
6-June-2005

This number is very important. It lets you know how well you have been controlling your child's diabetes over the past two or three months.

When you or your child check their blood glucose levels at home you know what their level is at that moment. This is very important for knowing how much food they should eat or how much insulin they need to take. Many blood glucose monitors will give you a two-week average when you insert the test strip. This information is a helpful snapshot of your child's overall control but its not the real indicator. For you to really know how well diabetes is being controlled in your child you need to know the extent of control over a much longer period of time, about three months. Your hemoglobin A1c value will give you that information.

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How A1c Works

A small portion of the glucose that circulates throughout your child's blood after having been absorbed by their intestine also combines with their hemoglobin. Hemoglobin is the red colored protein in red blood cells that carry oxygen to the rest of the body. This small amount of glucose binds with the hemoglobin. It combines, in the hemoglobin, in direct proportion to the amount of glucose in the blood . Once this binding occurs, it remains until the individual red blood cells die. This usually takes about three months. When your child's blood is analyzed the hemoglobin A1c value gives you a very good indicator of diabetes control over that period of time.

How Much is too Much?

If your child's diabetes is under good control, their A1c value will be under 8 percent. If you're doing really well their A1c value will be under 7 percent. The following chart will show you approximate A1c values and the corresponding blood glucose levels.

HbA1c Levels And Blood Glucose Equivalents
HbA1c Level (%) Average Blood Glucose (mg/dl)
14 360
13 333
12 300
11 270
10 240
9 210
8 180
7 150
6 120
5 80

Why is A1c Important?

You have probably heard about all of the complications that can result from diabetes. You can be certain that if your child has chronically high blood glucose levels they will be more vulnerable to these complications as they grow older . Many of these complications take years to develop. It doesn't matter how your child feels right now. It is critically important for you to help your child maintain their A1c as far under 8 as possible.

By Russell Turner