Your check-up results came back: what the numbers mean and what to ask your doctor

A check-up report is a page of numbers, some of them flagged. This article explains what the common ones measure and which ranges health authorities publish, so the report is easier to read before you talk it through with your doctor.

It does not tell you what your own results mean. The same number can mean different things for different people, depending on age, history, medicines and other results, and one reading is rarely the whole story.

Before the numbers: three things to know

• Countries draw some lines differently. The ranges below come from named organisations, and where two of them differ, both are shown. Your report may use your own country's or laboratory's ranges; those are the ones your doctor will use.
• Units differ. Much of the world reports blood sugar and cholesterol in mmol/L; the US and Japan mostly use mg/dL. HbA1c is shown as a percentage or in mmol/mol. The conversions here are rounded.
• One result is not a diagnosis. Doctors often repeat a test, or check it another way, before deciding anything [1] [5].

Blood sugar: fasting glucose

What it measures: the sugar in your blood after not eating, usually overnight.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) publishes these ranges [1]:

• Normal: 99 mg/dL (5.5 mmol/L) or below
• Prediabetes: 100 to 125 mg/dL (5.6 to 6.9 mmol/L)
• Diabetes: 126 mg/dL (7.0 mmol/L) or above

Blood sugar over months: HbA1c

What it measures: roughly, your average blood sugar over the past two to three months, from how much sugar has attached to your red blood cells.

The CDC's ranges [1]:

• Normal: below 5.7% (39 mmol/mol)
• Prediabetes: 5.7% to 6.4% (39 to 46 mmol/mol)
• Diabetes: 6.5% (48 mmol/mol) or above

The CDC adds that if a test was done at a health fair or pharmacy, you should follow up with your doctor, who may re-test you [1].

Cholesterol: LDL, HDL and non-HDL

What they measure: LDL cholesterol is often called the "bad" cholesterol and HDL the "good" one. Non-HDL cholesterol is total cholesterol minus HDL. Some reports calculate LDL from the other numbers rather than measuring it directly [2].

For adults aged 20 and over, the US National Library of Medicine's MedlinePlus lists these as healthy levels [2]:

• Total cholesterol: less than 200 mg/dL (5.2 mmol/L)
• LDL: less than 100 mg/dL (2.6 mmol/L)
• Non-HDL: less than 130 mg/dL (3.4 mmol/L)
• HDL: 60 mg/dL (1.6 mmol/L) or more is best; below 40 mg/dL (1.0 mmol/L) for men and below 50 mg/dL (1.3 mmol/L) for women is considered low

It adds that a healthy level depends on your age, family history, lifestyle and other risk factors, and that your provider can explain what is right for you [2].

A different line in Japan. The Japan Atherosclerosis Society's 2022 guideline uses these screening cut-offs [3]:

• LDL: 140 mg/dL (3.6 mmol/L) or more is high; 120 to 139 mg/dL (3.1 to 3.6 mmol/L) is borderline
• Non-HDL: 170 mg/dL (4.4 mmol/L) or more is high; 150 to 169 mg/dL (3.9 to 4.4 mmol/L) is borderline
• HDL: below 40 mg/dL (1.0 mmol/L) is low

These are screening thresholds, not targets. For borderline results the guideline asks doctors to look for other risk factors before deciding whether treatment is needed [3]. Treatment targets in most guidelines depend on a person's overall risk, which is one reason two people with the same LDL can be advised differently.

Triglycerides

What they measure: a type of fat in the blood, which rises after eating. That is why some tests are done fasting.

The Japan Atherosclerosis Society's 2022 guideline treats 150 mg/dL (1.7 mmol/L) or more as high in a fasting sample, defined as more than 10 hours without food, and 175 mg/dL (2.0 mmol/L) or more in a non-fasting sample [3]. Check whether your test was fasting before comparing it with any range.

Blood pressure

What it measures: the pressure in your arteries when the heart beats (the first, systolic number) and between beats (the second, diastolic number), in mm Hg.

The CDC, following the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association, lists [4]:

• Normal: below 120 and below 80
• Elevated: 120 to 129 and below 80
• Stage 1 high blood pressure: 130 to 139, or 80 to 89
• Stage 2 high blood pressure: 140 or higher, or 90 or higher
• Severe: higher than 180 and/or higher than 120. The CDC says to call your healthcare professional; with symptoms such as chest pain, shortness of breath, back pain, numbness, weakness, a change in vision or difficulty speaking, call emergency services.

A different line in Europe. The European Society of Cardiology's 2024 guideline uses three groups for readings taken in a clinic [5]:

• Not elevated: below 120 and below 70
• Elevated: 120 to 139, or 70 to 89
• Hypertension: 140 or higher, or 90 or higher

Both organisations say readings vary through the day. The CDC notes that a diagnosis usually takes several readings over more than one visit, sometimes with home monitoring [4]; the European guideline promotes measurement outside the clinic for diagnosis [5].

Questions to take to your doctor

• Which of my results are outside the range your laboratory uses, and does any of them need action now?
• Should any test be repeated, or confirmed another way?
• Was my blood test meant to be fasting, and does that change how to read it?
• How do my results fit with my age, family history and other risk factors?
• Is there a target you would like me to aim for, and when should we check again?
• Are there changes to how I eat or move that you would suggest for me?
• If I take a medicine, does any result change how I should take it?

Keeping the record

Results are easier to discuss when you can see them over time. Senumi can read a printed lab report from a photo and keep fasting blood sugar, total, LDL and HDL cholesterol, and weight, so you can bring the history to your next appointment, alongside a log of your meals if you keep one. It recognises some other values, such as HbA1c and triglycerides, but does not save them yet.

Senumi does not interpret results, does not diagnose, and does not give medical advice. Always check a scanned value against the original report.

Sources

1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Diabetes testing. Accessed 1 November 2026.
2. MedlinePlus, US National Library of Medicine. Cholesterol levels. Updated 15 October 2024; accessed 1 November 2026.
3. Okamura T, Tsukamoto K, Arai H, et al. Japan Atherosclerosis Society (JAS) Guidelines for Prevention of Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Diseases 2022. J Atheroscler Thromb. 2024;31(6):641-853. Table 1.
4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About high blood pressure. Reviewed 13 October 2026; accessed 1 November 2026.
5. McEvoy JW, McCarthy CP, Bruno RM, et al. 2024 ESC Guidelines for the management of elevated blood pressure and hypertension. Eur Heart J. 2024;45(38):3912-4018.