Why Blood Type Stuff Might Change Sugar Tests in Pregnant Moms
Glycated hemoglobin and red blood cell indices in non-diabetic pregnant women
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Hemoglobin and hematocrit — not glucose — were significant predictors of HbA1c in regression analysis, even after adjusting for other factors.
Most doctors assume HbA1c reflects average blood sugar, but this shows red blood cell mass alone can shift the number, potentially leading to false diagnoses.
Practical Takeaways
If you're pregnant and your HbA1c is borderline high, ask your doctor to check your hemoglobin and hematocrit before diagnosing prediabetes.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Hemoglobin and hematocrit — not glucose — were significant predictors of HbA1c in regression analysis, even after adjusting for other factors.
Most doctors assume HbA1c reflects average blood sugar, but this shows red blood cell mass alone can shift the number, potentially leading to false diagnoses.
Practical Takeaways
If you're pregnant and your HbA1c is borderline high, ask your doctor to check your hemoglobin and hematocrit before diagnosing prediabetes.
Publication
Journal
Clinics and Practice
Year
2017
Authors
A. Abass, Imad R. Musa, D. Rayis, I. Adam, Gasim Gasim I.
Related Content
Claims (6)
Your HbA1c number isn't just about your average blood sugar — it also depends on how long your red blood cells live. The longer they stick around, the more sugar builds up on them, which can raise your HbA1c even if your blood sugar is stable.
In pregnant women who don’t have diabetes, blood traits like hemoglobin and hematocrit can slightly predict their average blood sugar levels — but other traits like MCHC and PDW don’t hold up when we adjust for other factors.
In pregnant women without diabetes, having more hemoglobin in the blood is linked to slightly higher HbA1c levels — a marker usually tied to blood sugar — suggesting that blood cell levels might affect this test even if sugar isn't high.
In pregnant women without diabetes, having more red blood cells might make their blood sugar test results look higher than they really are, even if their actual sugar levels are normal.
In pregnant women who don’t have diabetes, having denser hemoglobin in their red blood cells might be linked to slightly higher blood sugar levels over time.