Simple test to show if you need treatment

SO YOu think you might be at risk of type 2 diabetes — what next? If you are in one of the at-risk groups (over 25 and from a South Asian or Afro-Caribbean background, or Caucasian and over 40, particularly if you are overweight, obese or have a family history of diabetes) you can ask your GP for a free annual blood-glucose test.

‘All the evidence shows that the earlier diabetes is picked up the better the prognosis, as it allows for better blood glucose control,’ says Professor Anthony Barnett, a leading diabetes researcher based at Birmingham’s Heartlands Hospital.

‘A GP screening is best in a high-risk individual because it is free and they can then offer immediate treatment.’

If you don’t qualify for this, some chemists, such as Lloydspharmacy, will do a risk assessment involving a questionnaire looking at such factors as weight, age, diet and family history.

If this indicates you are at risk of diabetes, you will be given a simple finger-prick blood test which checks your levels of glucose and gives immediate results. If your levels are above normal, you will be asked to come back and do a second test after fasting overnight.

THere are home test kits, which will give you the same reading as a pharmacy test, but a pharmacist’s interpretation will be more informed, says Professor Barnett.

People with borderline readings may benefit from a discussion with their GP, he adds.

To get the most accurate result from a home test kit, he suggests taking it at least 1-2 hours after a meal, or preferably before breakfast having fasted since 10pm the night before.

‘After a fast, a blood glucose level over 6 would need further checking. With a post-meal check, anything over 8 should be reported to your GP.’

If you already have type 2, you may have been given a home testing kit to regularly measure your blood-sugar levels. There is now a new, more accurate, blood test (HbAIC) that people with type 2 diabetes are meant to have at least once a year (or more often if you have recently been diagnosed, your blood sugar remains too high or your treatment plan has changed; talk to your GP).

This shows the pattern of your blood-sugar levels over the past two to three months by measuring the number of glucose molecules stuck to red blood cells. The advantage is that you don’t need to fast for eight hours before it or wait around in the surgery for two hours after you eat sugar.

The test can also be bought over the counter (it involves a finger-prick test which you then send to a lab which will give you the results in 48 hours).

GlucoMen A1c test, from £17 from pharmacies (it may need to be ordered).