September 5, 2001
Diagnosis and Symptoms
Question from Welaka, Florida, USA:
My 83 year old mother had a blood glucose recently of 121 mg/dl [6.7 mmol/L], and she is now convinced she will die from diabetes because her doctor told her she was borderline. We cannot get her to eat a normal diet. She will not eat any starches or sugars. She has lost 10 pounds in the last month.and is a small frail woman as it is. Should she be concerned about this result? Do you feel that this is a case of “overkill”?
Answer:
It sounds like it is a bit of an overreaction. Complications are related to severity of glucose elevation and duration of exposure. Your mother’s sugar level is not high, and it sounds like she hasn’t had diabetes diagnosed yet. Even if she has elevated sugars of a minor degree, medications are available to treat this. She should not allow herself to induce poor nutrition on her health.
JTL
