The metabolic protocol for people who won’t give up carbs — and don’t want the shot

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HbA1c to average glucose calculator

HbA1c reflects your average blood sugar over about three months. This converts it to an estimated average glucose (eAG) — the same units your glucose meter shows — so the number feels concrete. Enter an A1C, or work backwards from an average glucose.

Estimated average glucose: 125 mg/dL (7 mmol/L)

An estimate from the ADAG regression — not a diagnosis. A lab A1C and a meter reading measure different things; talk to your clinician about your numbers.

The formula

The conversion comes from the A1c-Derived Average Glucose (ADAG) study, which defined the relationship between A1C and average glucose:

Worked example: an A1C of 6.0% → 28.7 × 6.0 − 46.7 ≈ 125 mg/dL (about 7.0 mmol/L). An A1C of 7.0% works out to about 154 mg/dL.

How carb fasting fits

Because HbA1c tracks roughly three months of blood sugar, it's a useful way to see whether an eating change is moving your average over time — though it misses day-to-day swings (a CGM is better for those). See the HbA1c page for the cut points and what they mean, or read the protocol.

References

  1. Nathan et al. — Translating the A1C Assay Into Estimated Average Glucose Values, Diabetes Care 2008 (PMID 18540046)
  2. NIDDK (NIH) — The A1C Test & Diabetes