HYPOGLYCEMIA IN DIABETES (LOW BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS)

Hypoglycemia is a condition your body experiences when blood sugar/glucose levels are very low. Having too much insulin and not enough glucose in your blood stream are going to be the main causes of hypoglycemia “aka lows.”

Hypoglycemia is the most critical situation for a diabetic since there are very high risks and immediate action must be taken!! Blood sugar levels below 70 mg/dL require immediate treatment involving taking rapid action to get your glucose levels back to normal.

hypoglycemia symptoms

One of the main symptoms of a low sugar condition is shakiness, which is in our experience the most noticeable one as well as being irritable (believe me, this is a very common one for us when he is low sugar).

Symptoms like sweating, hunger and dizziness will be conditions to watch out for when you feel your sugar levels may be dropping.

Any diabetic could also start feeling clumsiness, difficulty when speaking and double vision. It is extremely important as a diabetic, and the persons around you like friends and family, to acknowledge these symptoms far ahead since they can be followed by unconsciousness, convulsions, confusion and potentially… death. I know, it is not a pretty word to hear but all diabetics out there need to be aware of these symptoms and work towards analyzing them and taking action.

hypoglycemia causes

When it comes to what causes hypoglycemia, there are actually many factors that take place.

To start with, taking too much insulin is the number one cause of a hypoglycemia, followed by not eating enough (which they are related).
Taking too much insulin is one of the most difficult situations to manage, especially when you are not familiar with the food you are about to eat. Our recommendation in this situation is to wait until you are certain about how many carbohydrates, protein and fats you are going to eat, instead of taking your insulin ahead or guessing the amount of portions. This can be applied to cook outs, parties or even business dinners or lunches.

Also, we cannot emphasize this enough… BE PATIENT! When your glucose levels are high and you take your recommended insulin to bring the glucose levels down back to normal, be patient…since this process can take time, depending on what you ate. I have seen many times people taking extra insulin because they feel their sugar levels are not going down and think they didn’t shoot enough insulin. You need to know that if you do that, your insulin doses will take action sooner or later. So make sure you think about the overall amount you are shooting for what you ate and wait for that insulin amount to take action, otherwise you will experience low blood sugar!

Another cause of hypoglycemia is alcohol, YES alcohol. You need to be aware that the higher the alcohol content, the more it lowers your sugar levels since it increases your insulin secretion. Therefore, a recommendation for the drinkers out there, make sure you mix high alcohol drinks with some sugary soft drinks so it evens out the effect. Also, eating a meal or snacking something while drinking alcohol will help you prevent the “low” from occurring.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY

Moderate to intense exercise may cause your blood glucose to drop for the next 24 hours following exercise.

When you exercise, the body uses two sources of fuel, sugar and free fatty acids (that is, fat) to generate energy. The sugar is stored in the liver and muscle in a form called glycogen. Exercise can deplete sugar levels and glycogen stores. The body will replace these glycogen stores but this process may take 4 to 6 hours, even 12 to 24 hours with more intense activity. During this rebuilding of glycogen stores, a person with diabetes can be at higher risk for hypoglycemia.

If your post workout meal has carbohydrates, take into account that most likely, your body is going to use those carbs to restore your glycogen levels. In other words, those carbohydrates will not rise your sugar levels as they would do when you didn’t exercise.
It is recommended to always check your sugar levels before, during and after a workout, and arrange the insulin dose accordingly.

Note that heavy lifting or high intense activity may actually rise your sugar levels so always be sure of the type of activity and your sugar levels prior to it (I will write another post about physical activity later on the Diabetes section).

HOW CAN I PREVENT A HYPOGLYCEMIA?

The number one action to take to prevent a hypoglycemia is to manage your sugar levels very regularly, at least 5-7 times a day so you know your sugar levels constantly.

Another action to take is trying not to skip meals since your insulin doses will be based upon the meals you eat. Therefore, if you plan ahead certain meals throughout your day, make sure you stick to those.

Also, weight your macronutrient portions. You need to know the grams of carbohydrates, protein and fats you consume on every meal in order to shoot the right amount of insulin.

As a main precaution, we always carry some orange juice or glucose tablets with us everywhere we go. As a diabetic, you always need to have some sugar related drink or snack handy for emergency. Other precaution will be to take your diabetes identification with you at all times specially when traveling. (I will post another article about traveling with diabetes later on the Diabetes section).

Bottom line is, hypoglycemia is a very serious condition and I hope with this overview I have helped you understand the severeness of it and how to prevent being low as much as possible.

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Always remember: “ADAPT DIABETES TO YOUR LIFE AND NOT YOUR LIFE TO DIABETES”

Thanks and see you on the next post!