Gabe Mirkin, M.D.
When your blood sugar level rises too high, sugar sticks
to cells. Once on a cell, sugar cannot be removed and is
converted to a poison called sorbitol that destroys the cell to
damage arteries and cause heart attacks. HemoglobinA1C
(HBA1C) measures how much sugar is attached to cell
membranes. A study in the Archives of Internal Medicine
(Volume 16, 2005) shows that an HBA1C level below 4.6 percent
means you are at very low risk for a heart attack. However, each
one-percent increase raises the risk for a heart attack nearly 2.5
times. So people who have HBA1Cs above 4.6 are at increased
risk for heart attacks, even if they are not diabetic.
More than 40 percent of Americans die of heart attacks
and other blood vessel damaging diseases and 35 percent
ultimately become diabetic. That means that all people who have
HBA1Cs above 5 should consider losing excess weight by eating
less and exercising more, avoiding smoking, and going on a diet
that limits refined carbohydrates (foods made from flour or with
added sugars), saturated fats (meat and chicken) and partially
hydrogenated oils. If your HBA1C is above 6, your doctor may
prescribe diabetic medications, even if he or she does not call
you as a diabetic. See my report on insulin resistance
June 15, 2006