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Finding out the normal blood sugar levels after eating can be tricky. This is because the normal levels depend upon various factors. The factors include your age, present illnesses, diabetes and its type, insulin usage, etc. What’s normal for you may not be normal for others. However, there are standard safe blood sugar ranges that you should know. Knowing your normal blood sugar levels after eating is essential as it will help you in understanding what foods cause them. Thus helping define their limit. Along with this, it also helps your doctor prescribe the correct course of medication. In this wholesome blog, we will comprehensively discuss the ideal after meal blood sugar level, foods affecting it, tips for maintaining it and much more. So, let’s begin with this!
What is a Normal Blood Sugar Level Immediately After Eating?
According to the World Health Organisation(WHO), normal blood sugar levels in the fasting state for non-diabetics should be between 70 mg/dL and 100 mg/dL. However, normal blood sugar levels after eating (immediately) are greater because of the food intake. The level of sugar after meal rises as food gets converted into sugar or glucose. Therefore, your after breakfast blood sugar level, post lunch blood sugar levels and after dinner sugar levels will be much higher than your fasting sugar levels. So, in the chart below, we have summarised normal blood sugar levels after eating (immediately):
| Group | Fasting Blood Sugar Levels | Normal Blood Sugar Levels After Eating (Immediately) |
|---|---|---|
| Non-diabetics | 70-100 mg/dL | 170-200 mg/dL |
| Pre diabetics | 100-125 mg/dL | 190-230 mg/dL |
| Diabetics | Above 125 mg/dL | 230-300 mg/dL |
What is the Correct Sugar Level After 2 Hours of Eating?
As said earlier, the ideal or correct blood sugar level after eating varies in individuals. It depends on your age, whether you are diabetic or not, whether you are pregnant or not and so on. Below are the recommended blood sugar level post meal according to different conditions:
| Normal Blood Sugar After 2 hours of Eating in mg/dL | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-diabetic adults | Between 90 and 140 mg/dL, post-meal after at least 2 hours | |||
| Diabetic adults | Under 180 mg/dL, post-meal, at least after two hours | |||
| Diabetic patients on mealtime insulin | Under 180 mg/dL, post-meal, at least after two hours | |||
| Diabetes patients not on mealtime insulin | Under 140 mg/dL, post-meal, at least after two hours | |||
| Pregnant women with gestational diabetes | Under 140 mg/dL, post-meal after one hour and under 120 mg/dL post-meal after two hours | |||
| Pregnant women who are already having type 1 or type 2 diabetes | Under 110 to 140 mg/dL, post-meal after one hour and under 100 to 120 mg/dL post-meal after two hours | |||
| Children with juvenile diabetes | Under 200 mg/dL, post-meal after one hour and under 180 mg/dL post-meal after two hours | |||
Read More: 15 Foods To Lower Blood Sugar Levels
After Eating What Should Blood Sugar Be
Your blood sugar level rises and declines after meals. Below is the chart that depicts sugar level before and after meals step by step. Let’s have a look:
| Sr. No | Stages | Blood Sugar Levels |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fasting Normal Sugar Level | Between 70-99 mg/dL |
| 2 | Normal Sugar Level After 1 Hour Eating | 90-130 mg/dL |
| 3 | Normal Blood Sugar 2 Hours After Eating | 90-110 mg/dL |
| 4 | Normal Blood Sugar 3 Hours After Eating | 70-90 mg/dL |
| 5 | Normal Blood Sugar 5 Hours After Eating | 70-90 mg/dL |
How Does Food Affect Blood Sugar After Meal?
The body breaks the food you eat into carbs, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals, etc. Carbs are the nutrients that affect the blood sugar levels the most. Therefore, overconsumption of carbs can lead to blood sugar spikes. But you should also know not all carbs convert into blood sugar at the same rate. Carbs are divided into three broad categories which you derive from food.
- Simple Carbs or sugar: You get this from foods like fruits, refined products, bakery products, juices, desserts, mithais, processed foods, etc.
- Complex carbs or starches: You get this through starchy veggies, rolled oats, millets like chickpeas, barley, etc.
- Fiber or non-digestible carbs: You obtain this from non-starchy or green veggies, and low-GI fruits like apples, avocados, beans, and whole grains.
Simple carbs are the quickest to break down. They convert into glucose and cause maximum blood sugar spikes. Complex carbs slowly break down and are less likely to cause blood sugar fluctuations or spikes. Complex carbs contain fiber, which slows down their digestion. The glycemic index measures the rise in blood sugar in the food. This index ranks food between 0 to 100 and classifies them as low, medium and high. Foods that score lower or have low glycemic scores cause less or no spike. These foods are good for you since they are processed slowly. On the contrary, foods scoring higher cause maximum spikes and should be avoided.
Read More: What is Glycemic Index And To Calculate?
Why Measuring Blood Sugar After Eating Food is Important?
Blood glucose is the prime or main source from which your body gets its energy. In the process of digestion, carbs like sugar, starch and fiber all get converted to glucose. Therefore, eating an unregulated amount of carbs can spike your blood sugar to unhealthy levels. This situation, especially for diabetes patients, is not at all desired.
For diabetes patients it’s necessary to maintain normal blood sugar after meals and before meals. Keeping normal blood sugar levels after eating and overall prevents hyperglycemia (high blood sugar). If a diabetes patient doesn’t keep a check on the blood sugar levels and stays in hyperglycemia, it can inflict severe damage to body cells and organs. It can cause diabetes-related complications like diabetic retinopathy (eye-related damage), diabetic nephropathy (kidney ailments, diabetic nephropathy (nervous system damage), heart attacks, etc.
Therefore, diabetic patients should try to maintain normal sugar level after and before food. They should get their blood sugar regularly checked and follow necessary dietary guidelines. Your diabetologist may want to know your blood sugar at different hours of the day, which can be done through CGM machines at home. Or they will ask you to measure the sugar level before and after meals (after 2 hours).
Read More: 10 Best Glucometers in India
Who Needs to Check Average Blood Sugar After a Meal?
For diabetes patients, whether type 1 or type 2, they must measure blood sugar at regular intervals. Measurement of blood sugar helps them and the doctor to prescribe the medication and its dosage. Additionally, blood sugar reading plays a part in deciding the food choices and physical workout intensity.
Checking blood sugar is also necessary for pregnant women who have or are at risk of gestational diabetes. If you have a tendency to hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), which can be due to medicines or present health conditions, you need to measure your blood sugar.
Read More: Resistant Starch and Diabetes
Tips for Maintaining Normal Sugar Level After Eating
Tips for maintaining normal blood sugar include dietary modifications. In addition to tweaking dietary patterns, lifestyle modifications can play a determinant role in managing blood sugar levels.
Dietary Changes
There are a few steps or methods you can take that can keep your blood sugar after meal in the normal range:
- Plate Method: Divide your plate according to nutrients. The plate will be divided into 4 parts. Out of 4 parts, 2 parts will be veggies or sabji of non-starchy veggies. One part will be lean protein, and the last will be complex carbohydrates.
- Carbs Counting: Be sceptical about the food choices you make. Read the ingredients of that food and control the amount of carbs you intake. Avoid foods with simple carbs like white flour, sugar, etc.
- Please consult with a dietician or us (Breathe Well-being, who have a team of health experts.) in deciding your meal plan.
Lifestyle Modifications
- Regular physical activity: Engage in regular workouts. Begin with light activities and training such as walking, jogging, cycling, etc. Aim for a minimum of 30 minutes of moderate-intensity sessions most days of the week. Then, try focusing on strength and muscle-building workouts.
- Maintain a healthy weight: Overweight and obese diabetics should achieve and maintain a healthy amount of body weight. They can do so through a combo of healthy eating and regular workouts. Losing even a small amount of weight can significantly improve blood sugar control.
- Make healthy choices like avoiding saturated fats, sugary foods, and fried and processed foods.
- Take less stress, as stress can increase your blood sugar levels.
- Drink water in plenty of amounts.
Medications
The above steps will definitely help you keep your blood sugar in control. However, the doctor will evaluate you and, if necessary, prescribe medication. The following are the classes of medicines that the doctor will prescribe based on your blood sugar and other factors.
- Insulin
- Alpha-glucosidase inhibitors
- SGLT2 inhibitors
- Sulfonylureas
- DPP-4 inhibitors
- Bile acid sequestrants
- Biguanides
- Thiazolidinediones
- Dopamine-2 agonists
- Meglitinides, etc.
Read More: What is Insulin & How Does It Work?
Conclusion
In conclusion, understanding normal blood sugar levels after eating is crucial for managing overall health. The impact of food on blood sugar varies from diabetes patients to those without. Monitoring post-meal blood sugar levels provides insight into how our bodies metabolise food and can guide dietary choices. Maintaining normal blood sugar levels requires a balanced diet and lifestyle adjustments. Incorporating whole foods, controlling portion sizes, and staying active are essential.
Moreover, for individuals with diabetes or other health conditions, regular blood sugar monitoring and consultation with the doctor are paramount. By adopting these practices, individuals can better manage their blood sugar levels, promote overall well-being, and reduce the risk of complications associated with fluctuations in blood sugar.
FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
The normal blood sugar after eating for no diabetic patients should be between 80 mg/dL and 140 mg/dL. Remember to have a 2-hour gap after eating before taking the blood test.
Yes, 120 mg/dL sugar level after eating is absolutely normal. For a normal adult, after-meal blood sugar should be less than 140 mg/dL.
There is no need to measure after-meal blood sugar after 1 hour of eating in general. Only gestational diabetes and juvenile diabetes patients need to do so. According to the Mount Sinai website, the blood sugar after 1 hour of eating should be under 180 mg/dL.
No blood sugar level will rise immediately after you eat sugar because the body will further break the sugar into glucose enzymes. However, if you are non-diabetic, the insulin hormone will be released, and the blood sugar level will be stabilised. In 2 hours after consuming sugar, your blood sugar level will return to normal.
No blood sugar level of 280 after eating is not normal for a non-diabetic patient. Even after eating, the immediate blood sugar level for a non-diabetic patient should be between 170 mg/dL and 200 mg/dL.
No blood sugar level of 350 is not normal. The normal blood sugar levels after eating for a non-diabetic should be between 170 mg/dL and 200 mg/dL. For a pre-diabetes patient, after a meal, the normal sugar level should be between 190 mg/dL and 230 mg/dL, and for a diabetic patient, the normal sugar level immediately after eating should be less than 300 mg/dL.
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