Conditions & Treatments > Basic Skills for Living With Diabetes > Diabetes overview
Diagnosing diabetes
Diabetes is not diagnosed by the symptoms it causes. You must have a test to measure blood glucose to find out if you have diabetes.
Diagnosis Tests
Tests
Fasting
Casual
Diabetes
126 mg/dL or higher on two occasions
200 mg/dL or higher (with symptoms)
"Pre Diabetes"
100-125 mg/dL (IFG : when your blood glucose is too high in the morning)
140-199 mg/dL (IGT : when your blood glucose is too high during the day)
Normal less than
less than 100 mg/dL
less than 140 mg/dL
IFG stands for impaired fasting glucose. IGT stands for impaired glucose tolerance.
Note: We used the word glucose instead of the word sugar so it does not get it confused with the sugar in food.
How diabetes affects your body
How insulin works
Where can I get help in managing my diabetes?
Back to Diabetes overview
Source: Allina Patient Education , Basic Skills for Living with Diabetes, fifth edition, ISBN 1-931876-16-9
First published: 12/01/2006
Reviewed by: Allina Patient Education experts
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