In the study conducted at Cardiff University School of Medicine, researchers contrasted the earlier belief of ‘keeping the glucose level too low’ by saying that patients with hypoglycemia-- lower than normal blood glucose leading to impairment in brain functioning, have high risk of death due to brain damage.
“The first thing you want to avoid almost no matter what is low blood sugar. If you’re driving and you have hypoglycemia, you can get in a car wreck,” said Dr. Daniel Bessesen, professor of medicine, University of Colorado Denver and chief of endocrinology at Denver Health Medical Center.
Type 2 diabetics studied
The research team studied 28,000 type 2 diabetics who were taking both, metformin also called Glucophage and sulphonylureas—anti type 2-diabetic drugs.
The team also examined another group of 20,000 diabetics who were just taking insulin
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It was found that people with the minimal blood sugar levels (median HbA1c of 6.4 percent) had 52 percent higher risk of death in comparison to those with 7.5 percent HbA1c.
The researchers also established that patients with the highest levels of blood glucose were at 79 percent higher risk of death as compared to the control group that was found to have the lowest mortality rate.
“Individuals should probably be aiming for blood sugar levels in the range of 7, and that is pretty tough for most people to do,” said Dr. Mary Ann Banerji, professor of medicine and director of the diabetes treatment center, State University of New York Downstate Medical Center.
The research team, though, did not summarize the actual causes of death in patients as the study was demonstrative.
Type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes is a disorder characterized by high blood glucose and implied insulin deficiency. However, it can primarily be dealt with exercise and dietary alterations, medications are required as the disease advances.
As with diabetes, varied drugs react differently in different human bodies, the team suggested.
“We need to individualize the A1c target and have it pretty close to 7. So if you can’t get to 7 and need to be at 7.5 because of hypoglycemia, then that’s what you should do,” said Dr. Richard Bergenstal, president of medicine and science, American Diabetes Association (ADA).
The details of the study appear online in The Lancet.
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