
October 15, 2001
Other
Question from the United Kingdom:
I bought some urine test strips which show no glucose in my urine, yet I am always thirsty and going to the bathroom a lot. Am I right in thinking that if the blood sugar level is below the renal threshold level for spilling glucose into the urine, then no excess thirst will result? Is this possibly diabetes or not? I know that everyone has a slightly different renal threshold, but what is an average value for when glucose starts spilling into the urine?
Answer:
If you have no glucose in your urine, then it is extremely unlikely you have diabetes. You may be thirsty for other reasons so it would be important to see your doctor about this. Usually, a blood glucose of above approximately 8 mmol/L [150mg/dl] would result in glucose in your urine.
JS