The American Diabetes Association (ADA) recommended in their 2010 guidelines that A1C screening for diabetes be used to test for pre-diabetes; that is, people with a high risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Early testing is important, because type 2 diabetes (unlike type 1) develops slowly over time and there may not be symptoms in the beginning stages. The A1C screening for diabetes shows the average blood sugar levels in the body over a period of a few months, and this can be done with a simple blood test that does not require fasting or any special preparation. However, while it is convenient and highly regarded, there are some limitations.

A1C Screening Limitations

Certain limitations in A1C screening for diabetes have been discovered by various research groups. It was reported in the ADA journal Diabetes Care [http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/early/2010/07/15/dc10-0433] that the test produced racial differences, where African Americans yielded more …