Blood Sugar Rises and Falls

Blood sugar usually rises after you eat. Your body breaks food into smaller parts, a bit like a blender does with fruit. Some of those parts turn into sugar, and that sugar passes into your blood.

This rise is expected. It happens to everyone, with or without diabetes.

Blood sugar can also fall between meals. It can fall after physical activity, such as a walk.

Some medicines make these falls more likely. Ask the care team what counts as too low for your loved one. Note the time and what was happening whenever a reading falls below that.

A single reading is like one photo of one moment. A fasting reading is taken after a stretch without food. An after-meal reading is taken after you eat. Each one tells the care team something different.

A few days of readings, taken at similar times, show a pattern. That pattern is often more useful than any one number.

Key takeaways

• Blood sugar rises after eating, as food breaks down into sugar.
• Blood sugar can also fall between meals or after activity.
• One reading is a snapshot, so several days of readings show the pattern.

Try it

Over several days, note each reading with its time and whether it came before or after a meal.