Testing and Diagnosis of Insulin Resistance
Your doctor might do the following to test for the condition:
A1C Test
Prediabetes or diabetes can be tested with an A1C test. It is used to measure your average blood sugar in the past 2 to 3 months.
- An A1C lower than 5.7 percent is seen as normal.
- An A1C between 5.7 and 6.4 percent is diagnostic for prediabetes.
- An A1C equal to or above 6.5 percent is diagnostic for diabetes.
In some cases, your doctor might want to retake this test. You should know the numbers may differ by 0.1 to 0.2 percent.
Fasting Blood Glucose Test
This is done to know your fasting blood sugar level. You must not eat or drink for at least 8 hours before the test is done. Another test will be done if the levels are high. Your doctor may diagnose you with prediabetes or diabetes:
- Fasting sugar levels lower than 100 milligrams/deciliter (mg/dL) are seen as normal.
- Readings between 100 and 125 mg/dL mean prediabetes.
- Readings equal to or greater than 126 mg/dL are diagnostic for diabetes.
These numbers may differ by 3 mg/dL.