Why is it important for people to know their blood glucose level?
Diabetes is a disease that is characterized by high levels of blood glucose. For people diagnosed with diabetes, reducing blood glucose levels as close to normal as possible can reduce serious complications of the disease. For people who have blood glucose levels in the pre-diabetic range reducing blood glucose levels can help prevent or delay the onset of diabetes. Thus it is vital for people at risk for diabetes to get tested in a physician’s office or other clinical setting, and learn their blood glucose level, so they can begin to take appropriate action to improve their health. To have an impact on the future of diabetes in America, there is a general consensus within the diabetes community that we should focus not only on people who have diabetes but also those who are at risk for developing diabetes, in order to help prevent new cases from occurring.5 Most groups preferred a national goal around identifying those individuals who are living with diabetes unknowingly or have pre-d
