3 min learnNew DelhiMar 5, 2026 09:30 AM IST
Can urine sugar and blood sugar produce two completely different outcomes? And what if just one is on the upper aspect? A Quora question bought us considering on the identical strains when a person requested: “I examined a affected person’s urine, and it confirmed sugar. After that, I examined the affected person’s blood sugar, and it was 85 mg/dL, which is regular. What’s the cause for this?”
Inquisitive, we reached out to Dr Pranav Ghody, a marketing consultant endocrinologist and diabetologist at Wockhardt Hospital, Mumbai Central, who agreed that it “can undoubtedly appear complicated at first”. “Most individuals will hyperlink the presence of sugar in urine to diabetes, however how the physique processes sugar is a bit more difficult than that,” stated Dr Ghody.
Usually, the glucose that’s filtered from the blood by the kidneys is nearly solely reabsorbed. “Sugar in urine solely happens when blood sugar ranges exceed a sure level (often 180 mg/dL), which overpowers the kidneys’ reabsorption skills. So, when blood sugar is 85 mg/dL, which is effectively inside the regular vary, we wouldn’t usually count on sugar in urine,” defined Dr Ghody.
There are a few potential explanations for this end result.
*One potential clarification is that the affected person has renal glycosuria, a innocent situation wherein the kidneys spill small quantities of glucose into the urine regardless of normal blood sugar levels. That is because of the kidney’s glucose threshold being set too low. It isn’t diabetes and doesn’t at all times have to be handled, stated Dr Ghody.
When are you taking the studying? (Picture: Freepik)
*One other potential cause is the timing of the urine pattern. “Maybe the urine pattern was taken a while after a short-lived enhance in blood sugar, comparable to after a big meal, and the sugar was current within the urine at a earlier time when the blood check confirmed regular ranges,” stated Dr Ghody.
*Additionally, laboratory variables should be considered. “False positives could happen on account of contamination, improper storage, or sure drugs,” famous Dr Ghody.
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*One other situation wherein gentle glycosuria could also be current with out diabetes is throughout being pregnant on account of elevated glomerular filtration, he stated.
Right here’s the Quora question (Picture: Quora)
It should be remembered {that a} single optimistic urine sugar check doesn’t affirm the analysis of diabetes, confused Dr Ghody, including, “Blood sugar assessments, both fasting, postprandial, or HbA1c, are nonetheless the usual.”
What to do?
If this end result retains popping up, it might not be unreasonable to recheck blood sugar levels, maybe take a post-meal studying, and take a look at general threat elements. Nonetheless, by itself, regular blood sugar with sugar in urine just isn’t essentially a cause to sound the alarm, he contended, including that its all about correlation, not conclusion.
DISCLAIMER: This text relies on data from the general public area and/or the consultants we spoke to. All the time seek the advice of your well being practitioner earlier than beginning any routine.
