A bowl in the shape of a heart holds fresh vegetables, fruit, and nuts. Under the bowl is a paper with "RX" on the top. A stethoscope and laptop are on the right and weights and a water bottle are on the left.

Goals for Health

Your Healthy Targets

Your diabetes can be managed. Your healthcare team will teach you about keeping your blood sugar, cholesterol, and blood pressure in a normal range. They will also teach you how to make healthy food choices, exercise, manage your stress or depression, and stop smoking.

Managing your disease can prevent or delay the onset of the health problems related to having diabetes and help you live a healthier life. If you don’t take action to manage diabetes, you will be at high risk for developing other health problems.

Achieve Health

Take action to prevent or delay the onset of health problems:

  • Take your medicines as prescribed by your doctor
  • Make healthy food choices
  • Exercise and be active
  • Manage your stress and depression
  • Check your blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels
  • Avoid smoking or breathing second-hand smoke

It is the health problems of diabetes that cause harm and can lead to disability or death, not the disease itself. Long term health problems include:

  • heart attack
  • stroke
  • kidney disease (kidney failure)
  • eye disease (loss of vision)
  • pain
  • ulcers
  • amputation

Your Goals for Health

Read this section to know how to keep your blood sugar, cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood pressure in a normal range and how to increase your fitness, manage your stress or depression, and quit smoking.

Healthy Target: A1c

Your A1c tells the doctor how well you are controlling your diabetes.

A healthy target for A1c level is less than 7% (normal 4.1-5.5%).

A1c is a type of blood test that measures how well you managed your blood sugar over the past 3 months. The A1c test counts the number of blood cells with sugar attached to them.

The A1c test results are expressed in percent (%). A normal A1c number is less than 7%.

Use a conversion chart to relate your A1c to your average blood sugar. Follow the three steps below.

  1. Find your A1c level from your blood work.
  2. Look for your A1c level in the conversion chart.
  3. Follow the same row to the right to find your average blood sugar.

For example, 8% A1c means your average blood sugar is 11.4 mmol/L.

A1c
(%)		Average Blood Sugar (mmol/L)
55.6
67.5
79.4
811.4
913.3
1015.3
1117.2
1219.2
A1c Conversion Chart. Find your A1c level from your blood work. Look for your A1c level in the first column of this chart. Follow that row across to find your average blood sugar.

Both you and your doctor can use your A1c to guide what changes you need to make to your diabetes medicines or to your lifestyle habits.

If your A1c is less than 7%, you are in the right range.

  • Continue doing all of your healthy behaviours.
  • Talk to your doctor to make sure this number is good for you. You may not feel well with an A1c number of less than 7%.

If your A1c is more than 7%, talk to your doctor.

  • Discuss what you can do to lower your A1c. You may need to change your eating habits, exercise habits, stress or depression control, or take your medicines.
  • Check your blood sugar more often. Your blood sugar shows if the changes you make lower your blood sugar.

Healthy Target: Cholesterol

Take action to reach your healthy cholesterol targets:

  • LDL (bad) cholesterol: less than or equal to 2.0 mmol/L (less than or equal to 1.8 mmol/L if you are high risk)
  • HDL (good) cholesterol: higher than 1.0 mmol/L
  • Total cholesterol to HDL cholesterol ratio:  less than 4.0

A healthy target for triglycerides is less than 1.5 mmol/L.

Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance found in your body.

Your body needs cholesterol to:

  • keep your cells healthy
  • make hormones like testosterone and estrogen (needed for normal growth and reproduction)
  • make vitamin D (helps your body absorb calcium and promote bone growth)

There are 2 main types of cholesterol in your body:

  • Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol: often called ‘bad cholesterol’
  • High-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol: often called ‘good” cholesterol’

Blood cholesterol is measured from a sample of your blood. The result is in millimoles per litre (mmol/L) and tells you the number of cholesterol particles in your blood. A normal range for LDL (bad) cholesterol is less than or equal to 2.0 mmol/L (less than or equal to 1.8 mmol/L if you are high risk).

Why Do I Need to Check My Cholesterol Level?

One way to manage your diabetes is to manage your cholesterol level. You want less LDL (bad) cholesterol and more HDL (good) cholesterol in your body.

Too much LDL cholesterol causes plaque (a substance made of fat, dead cells, and calcium) to collect in your arteries. Plaque makes your arteries stiff and it becomes harder for blood to pass through them. As the plaque gets bigger and takes up more space, your arteries can become narrow or blocked. Blockages can cause a heart attack and stroke. Having high LDL cholesterol and diabetes puts you at a high risk for heart and stroke.

HDL (good) cholesterol protects you from heart disease. A normal range for HDL cholesterol is greater than 1.0 mmol/L.

How Do I Reach My Cholesterol Level Target?

Know your LDL (bad) cholesterol level to understand if you are managing your cholesterol. Your LDL cholesterol is in a healthy range if:

  • you had a heart attack or if you are a high risk patient and your LDL cholesterol is less than or equal to 1.8 mmol/L
  • you did not have a heart attack and your LDL cholesterol is less than or equal to 2.0 mmol/L

If your LDL (bad) cholesterol is in a healthy range:

  • Maintain your healthy behaviours
  • Talk to your doctor about how to prevent high cholesterol

If your LDL (bad) cholesterol is too high, take action to lower your cholesterol:

  • Make healthy food choices
  • Take medicine to lower your cholesterol

You may see a total cholesterol to HDL (good) cholesterol ratio in your blood work. This ratio tells you the balance of good and bad cholesterol in your blood. A normal number for this ratio is less than 4. A lower number is better for your health.

What Are Triglycerides?

Healthy Target: Triglycerides

A normal range for triglycerides is less than 1.5 mmol/L. A lower number is better for your health.

Triglycerides are a type of fat in your blood. Having high triglycerides in your blood puts you at risk for heart disease. A normal range for triglycerides is less than 1.5 mmol/L. A lower number is better for your health.

You can learn what your triglyceride level is from a certain blood test (called a lipid panel) ordered by your doctor. If your triglyceride level is higher than 1.5 mmol/L your doctor may ask you to do more blood work to check more lipid levels (such as Apo B and other non-HDL cholesterol).

Find out how to raise your HDL (good) cholesterol, lower your LDL (bad) cholesterol and your triglycerides through the food you eat »

Healthy Target: Blood Pressure

A healthy target for blood pressure is:

  • less than 130 mmHg for systolic pressure
  • less than 80 mmHg for diastolic pressure

This blood pressure target varies from person to person. Talk to your doctor about the right blood pressure for you.

When your heart beats, blood is pushed out of your heart and around your body. As your blood travels, it pushes against your artery walls. Blood pressure is the strength of this pushing.

What Does My Blood Pressure Reading Mean?

Blood pressure is measured in millimetres of mercury (mmHg). Millimetres of mercury (mmHg) measures the pressure of blood in your arteries.

A blood pressure reading is expressed in two numbers such as 120/80 mmHg. Both blood pressure numbers are important.

  • The top number is the strength when the heart pumps. This is called systolic blood pressure.
  • The bottom number is the strength when the heart relaxes. This is called diastolic blood pressure.

A normal blood pressure with your diabetes is less than 130/80 mmHg. This goal blood pressure varies from person to person. Talk to your doctor about the right blood pressure for you.

Why Do I Need to Monitor My Blood Pressure?

High blood pressure can have no warning signs. Not knowing you have high blood pressure is a problem because it can damage your heart (heart attack), brain (stroke), and kidneys (nephropathy), and needs to be treated. People living with diabetes often have high blood pressure. Have your blood pressure checked at each doctor’s visit. Your doctor may ask you to monitor your blood pressure at home.

How Do I Reach My Blood Pressure Target?

Know your blood pressure numbers to know if you are controlling your blood pressure. Your blood pressure goal is less than 130/80 mmHg.

If your blood pressure is below 130/80 mmHg, continue with your healthy habits.

  • Continue your healthy habits such as healthy eating, doing exercise, stress control and medicines.

If your blood pressure is more than 130/80 mmHg, talk to your doctor.

  • Ask your doctor what you can do to lower your blood pressure.
  • Lower your blood pressure with healthy eating, doing exercise, stress control, and taking your medicines.

Your blood pressure changes during the day, getting higher or lower based on the events of your day (such as a stressful moment or even standing up). Some people have higher blood pressure when they see their doctor as well. Your doctor will suggest when to check your blood pressure to see if it’s high most of the time or just at certain times.

Healthy Target: Fitness and Activity

Exercise regularly to help you manage your blood sugar.

Regular exercise can improve how well your body works and help you manage your diabetes. Exercise increases your body’s response to insulin which helps move sugar out of your blood and into your cells.

Your body gets sugar from your liver and from food and stores it in your muscles, in your liver, or as fat. When you exercise, your body mainly gets energy from sugar stored in your muscles. When those muscles need more sugar, insulin takes sugar out of your blood and brings it into your muscle cells.

Doing exercise for one hour can help balance your sugar levels up to 20 hours after your exercise session. Regular exercise can help you maintain the right blood sugar level throughout the day.

Learn what types of exercise you can do and how to add exercise to your life »

Healthy Target: Stress

Try to notice when you are feeling stressed and track what is causing it. Knowing the cause of stress can help you control it.

Stress is your body’s response to change. Any part of your life can be a stressor (something that causes stress) and it can be the result of good or bad things.

When you have stress, your body increases the level of a hormone called cortisol. Cortisol gets in the way of blood sugar control because it works against insulin. Cortisol lowers your insulin level, makes your body more resistant to insulin, and increases your blood sugar level. High blood sugar levels without enough insulin can damage your body.

Try to notice when you are feeling stressed and track what is causing the stress. Knowing the cause can help you get control of it.

Some stressors include changes in:

  • health
  • relationships
  • work
  • family
  • friendships
  • lifestyle
  • finances

Stress that lasts for weeks or months without a break is called chronic stress. Chronic stress leads to a fast heart rate, high blood pressure, and more plaque in your arteries.

If you feel stressed, talk to your healthcare provider about what can help.

Visit the Feel Well section to learn more about managing stress »

Healthy Target: Depression

Know the signs of depression. If you have many of these signs for 2 weeks or longer, you may be depressed.

Talk to your doctor about how you are feeling.

Depression is a mental health problem that involves how you feel. Depression is more common in people with diabetes. When you are depressed, your self-management decreases which means you may not take good care of your diabetes. Know the signs of depression so you can get help.

The signs of depression include:

  • loss of enjoyment in doing the things that used to be enjoyable
  • feeling down, hopeless or sad
  • difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep
  • having very little energy
  • changes in appetite, either loss of appetite or excessive appetite
  • having negative thoughts and feelings about yourself
  • trouble concentrating
  • loss of interest in sex

If you have many of these signs for 2 weeks or longer, you may be depressed. Talk to your doctor about how you are feeling.

Visit the Feel Well section to learn more about managing stress and depression »

Healthy Target: Smoking

Access resources that can help you reduce how much you smoke or quit smoking.

​Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you smoke, even if you do not plan to quit.

Smoking is more of a danger for people living with diabetes than others. Smoking raises your blood sugar and damages your arteries. If you have diabetes already, your arteries are at major risk.

There are many resources that can help you reduce how much you smoke and quit. Resources include:

  • nicotine replacement such as patches, gum, and candies
  • medicines to lower your withdrawal symptoms and cravings
  • quitting smoking programs online or in person

Talk to your doctor or pharmacist if you smoke. Your healthcare team needs to know you smoke, even if you do not plan to quit.