Understanding your eAG can help improve your diabetes management. Introduced by the American Diabetes Association (ADA) in 2010, eAG helps explain how A1C results relate to daily glucose readings. For example, a 6.0% A1C represents an average daily blood sugar reading of 126 mg/dL.
This article discusses estimated average glucose, how it is calculated, and what it means for your diabetes care.
How eAG Is Calculated
Both A1C testing and daily glucose readings provide useful information in the management of diabetes, but they are expressed in different ways. Daily glucose meter readings are a direct measurement of the amount of glucose in blood at the time a sample is taken and is expressed as milligrams of glucose per deciliter of blood—for example, 154 mg/dL.
A1C also uses a blood sample, but it looks at the percentage of hemoglobin, a protein in red blood cells, that has glucose attached to it (glycated hemoglobin). This reveals what an individual’s average blood glucose level has been for the past two to three months. An A1C of 7% means that 7% of the total hemoglobin in a blood sample is glycated.
Knowing your eAG can help with diabetes management by:
Confirming self-monitoring tests or practitioner-ordered blood testsProviding an overall look at how a treatment plan is workingIlluminating how healthy lifestyle choices can impact blood sugar control
While A1C and eAG levels will differ depending on several factors, including age, sex, activity level, etc., the ADA recommends a target eAG of 154 mg/dL (A1C = 7%) for most adults with diabetes who are not pregnant.
Average Glucose Reading on Meters and eAG
Most blood glucose meters used for daily testing can provide an average of all readings over the past several weeks or months. This average is not the same as the eAG. Even if you test your blood 10 times a day or more, you are only getting a reading of what your glucose is at that moment.
In fact, the average determined by your glucose meter is likely to be either lower or higher than your eAG. (If you measure sugar only postprandially, eAG will be lower than meter sugar, and if you measure sugar only preprandially, eAG may be higher than meter sugar. As a result, either direction is possible.) This is because the eAG represents an average of your glucose levels 24 hours a day and over a much longer period of time. Therefore, eAG is more accurate.
A Word From Verywell
Testing your blood sugar levels via any method can trigger strong feelings. Be gentle with yourself and remind yourself that you are not a number. Make sure you have a supportive care team to help you reach your treatment plan goals, adjusting as needed without judgment.
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