Blood sugar level important in diabetes-free people

[ReginaW]

Blood sugar level important in diabetes-free people

Elevated blood sugar in people without a prior diagnosis of diabetes raises the risk of premature death, results of a study show.

Only a few prospective studies have looked at associations between blood sugar levels among subjects initially free of diabetes and subsequent risk of death, Dr. Naomi Brewer, of Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand, and colleagues point out in the journal Diabetes Care.

Hemoglobin A1C testing -- a standard way to measure blood sugar -- was offered to people without diabetes during a screening program for hepatitis B in a region of New Zealand from 1999 to 2001. Mortality risk was examined to the end of 2004 in these subjects.

Among a total of 47,904 individuals, whose average age was 38 years, 815 died during the median follow-up of 4.4 years.

Brewer's team found that the risk of premature death rose in tandem with blood sugar levels. The risk of death increased steadily from the A1C "reference category" (4.0% to less than 5.0%) to the highest A1C category (7.0% or higher).

Strong associations were seen between elevated blood sugar and death from endocrine, nutritional, metabolic, and immunity disorders. Blood sugar was also strongly associated with death from diseases of the circulatory system. Weaker associations were observed between increasing blood sugar and deaths from cancer and other and unknown causes.

The investigators note that this is the largest study conducted to date of A1C levels and subsequent risk of mortality. "It confirms previous findings that A1C levels are strongly associated with subsequent mortality in both men and women who have not been diagnosed with diabetes."

SOURCE: Diabetes Care, June 2008.

http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSCOL46207820080604

[renegadiab]

Yet the medical establishment is more concerned with getting LDL cholesterol under 100 mg/dl than with getting blood glucose under 100 mg/dl. The ADA allows diabetics to maintain dangerously high glucose levels. However, most diabetics can't even meet the ADA targets.

Talk about bassackwards. :)

[amergin]

Thanks Regina.
I had a quick look for any info on whether this study is continuing to monitor it's target cohort. Or whether there was any recommendation for further study of this highly significant result.
I have found a ref on PubMed at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18299440?dopt=Abstract

Unfortunately I have not as yet got access to the full text which seems to be subscription only on Diabetes Care.
http://care.diabetesjournals.org/cgi/content/short/31/6/1144?rss=1

The main problem with this type of research is it will take a long time for the trends to emerge from the statistical fog, given that even if people's health is being progressively destroyed by elevated glucose/A1C levels, it will take forty or more years before the majority are deceased and so provide data for analysis.
IT is certainly unfortunate that, unlike "metabolic syndrome" "high cholesterol" or "obesity", mortality is one statistic that is indisputable.

(I now include the mandatory caveat that such studies are so far merely evidence of an association, and are not proof of a cause and effect.)

However there is a prospect that useful data can be recovered from re-analysis of the "base data" of past studies which might speed up the learning curve. What is required is a motive to provide resources for such reanalysis.
Which is where Dr Feinman and the campaign angle comes in.
We need to spread the message. Good to see you are continuing to do it so successfully Regina.

[Nancy LC]

I always like this Dr. Eades article about blood sugar and longevity: http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/2006/01/05/the-sugar-hypothesis/

Reading it every now and then keeps me straight.