WHAT’S YOUR NUMBER?
by Ngozi Osuagwu, MD | September 6th, 2015
No, I am not asking about your cell number or your work number. I am asking about your numbers – your weight, body mass index (BMI), waist measurement, blood pressure, hemoglobin A1C and your cholesterol. I am not asking you to memorize your numbers, but you should know what they are and record it somewhere so that you can track it.
Here is what we do know:
1 in 5 adults with high blood pressure do not know they have high blood pressure. If you do not know you have high blood pressure or if you have high blood pressure and your blood pressure is not normal, it really does not matter how many medications you are on, you will get all the complications that occur by having your blood pressure not controlled.
25 percent of people with diabetes do not know they have diabetes. 9 out of 10 people with prediabetes do not know they have prediabetes. When you are walking around with a disease you do not know you have, you have missed out on an opportunity to be proactive in managing the disease. You have missed out on the opportunity to make changes that may prevent complications from happening. Diabetes is the leading cause of preventable blindness.
Knowing your height and weight, allows you to calculate your body mass index. We know that a body mass index greater than 30 defines obesity. Obesity is the second leading cause of preventable illness. Number one cause of preventable disease is smoking tobacco.
The good news is that there are many people who work for companies where blood is drawn to obtain these numbers at no cost to the employee. Take advantage of these programs. Some will even offer testing to spouses.
Pay attention to the numbers. It is not enough to hear that your numbers are normal. Look at the actual numbers. Understand what is normal. If you do not understand what the numbers mean or your numbers are abnormal, talk to your doctor.
| Weight | Need to know to calculate your BMI |
| BMI | Below 18.5 Underweight
18.5 – 24.9 Normal 25.0 – 29.9 Overweight 30.0 and over Obese |
| Waist | Over 35 inches for women and over 40 inches for men is increases risk for weight related health issues |
| Blood pressure | Younger than 60 years old- greater than 140/90 is high blood pressure
Older than 60 years old – greater than 150/90 is high blood pressure |
| Hemoglobin A1C | Greater than 6.5 % is diabetes
5.7 – 6.4% – prediabetes |
| Total cholesterol | Less than 200 mg/dL … desirable
200 -239 mg/dL… Borderline high 240 mg/dL or higher …High |
| LDL | Less than 100 mg/dL…Optimal
100 – 129 mg/dL…Near/Above Optimal 130 – 159 mg/dL…Borderline high 160 – 189 mg/dL…High 190 mg/dL or higher … Very high |
| HDL | Less than 40 mg/dL increases your risk for heart disease. An HDL level of 60 mg/dL or more helps lower your risk of heart disease |
| Triglycerides | Less than 150 mg/dL…Normal
150-199 mg/dL….Borderline High 200 – 499 mg/dL…High 500 mg/dL or higher…Very high |
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