Whereas low blood glucose (hypoglycemia) would possibly seem to be an excuse to eat sweet, for these with diabetes, it’s removed from enjoyable. Hypoglycemia can disrupt day by day actions, trigger harmful conditions like whereas driving, and go away you feeling shaky and panicked.
This text covers signs, causes, therapy, and prevention of low blood sugar.
What’s low blood sugar?
In folks with out diabetes, blood sugar ranges hardly ever fall beneath 70 mg/dL.
After they do, the physique begins to battle with even primary capabilities. The mind, which is dependent upon a relentless provide of glucose for each bodily and psychological processes, can rapidly turn into impaired.
If left untreated, low blood glucose can result in extreme problems, together with seizures and even demise.
Learn extra in: What Are Regular Blood Sugar Ranges? and Blood Sugar Chart: Blood Sugar and A1c Targets.
What are the indicators and signs of low blood sugar?
There are a number of key indicators that your blood glucose has dropped beneath a secure degree. Based on the American Diabetes Affiliation (ADA), signs of lows embody:
- Feeling shaky
- Nervousness or anxiousness
- Sweating, chills, and clamminess
- Irritability or impatience
- Confusion
- Quick heartbeat
- Lightheadedness or dizziness
- Starvation
- Nausea
- Pallor (coloration draining from the pores and skin)
- Sleepiness
- Weak spot or lack of power
- Blurred or impaired imaginative and prescient
- Tingling or numbness within the lips, tongue, or cheeks
- Complications
- Clumsiness or coordination issues
- Nightmares or crying out throughout sleep
- Seizures
You may additionally expertise different distinctive signs. As an example, when my blood sugar drops throughout train, my thighs really feel numb and tingly. It’s vital to acknowledge your personal early indicators of hypoglycemia so you possibly can deal with it promptly.
Hypoglycemia unawareness
For some folks, significantly these with long-term diabetes, “hypoglycemia unawareness” can develop. This happens when your physique now not alerts low blood sugar, rising the chance of extreme lows and seizures.
Based on the ADA, it’s doable to regain early warning signs of low blood glucose by avoiding hypoglycemia for a number of weeks. This will require briefly elevating your blood sugar targets, which ought to be mentioned along with your healthcare crew.
To handle hypoglycemia unawareness, think about using a steady glucose monitor (CGM), which might provide you with a warning to low blood sugar earlier than it turns into harmful.
Additionally, elevating your goal blood sugar barely, akin to aiming for 100-110 mg/dL as a substitute of 90 mg/dL, can scale back the chance of extreme lows.
Be taught extra about this situation in: Understanding Hypoglycemia Unawareness.
Signs of low blood sugar whenever you aren’t truly low…
For folks with diabetes who’ve had constantly excessive blood glucose ranges (A1c above 8 %) or these coping with diabulimia, the physique can acclimate to those greater ranges. When blood sugar begins to come back right down to a more healthy vary, it could set off false signs of low blood sugar.
Reversing this subject takes time. Should you’re coping with diabulimia, attain out to your healthcare crew for assist.
Work along with your licensed diabetes care and schooling specialist (CDCES) to step by step decrease your blood sugar targets, permitting your physique to acclimate to more healthy ranges with out triggering false lows.
What causes low blood sugar?
In folks with sort 1 and kind 2 diabetes, lows normally consequence from an imbalance of meals, exercise, and insulin or different diabetes medicines.
Train with out adjusting insulin or carbs
Actions like strolling after a meal may cause a extreme drop in blood sugar if insulin isn’t adjusted, because the physique burns glucose quicker.
Inaccurate insulin dosing for carbs
Misjudging the insulin wanted for meals, like dosing for a medium apple however needing much less, can simply result in low blood sugar.
Tip: Use instruments like CalorieKing to double-check carb counts.
Weight reduction rising insulin sensitivity
Dropping as little as 5 kilos could make your physique extra delicate to insulin, resulting in frequent lows.
Tip: Speak to your CDCES about basal and carb-ratio testing.
Altering insulin wants
Components like stress, exercise, and weight adjustments can all have an effect on your insulin necessities over time.
Tight blood sugar targets
Aiming for non-diabetic blood sugar ranges will increase the chance of frequent lows, as even small doses of insulin or exercise may cause a sudden drop.
Tip: Should you’re experiencing frequent lows, evaluation your insulin dosing for meals and corrections to stop recurring hypoglycemia.
Learn extra about adjusting insulin doses, weight reduction, and train within the following articles:
Suggestions for treating low blood sugars
The “rule of 15” or “15-15 rule” (consuming 15 grams of carbs and checking blood sugar after quarter-hour) is a standard guideline, however managing hypoglycemia in actual life might be extra nuanced.
Have a glucagon equipment
For extreme lows, such when somebody is unable to eat or unconscious, a glucagon equipment might be life-saving.
Glucagon is a hormone that raises blood sugar by counteracting insulin. Each injectable and nasal spray varieties can be found.
Be certain that your prescription is updated, retailer the equipment in an accessible place, and guarantee others know the place it’s and how you can use it.
If glucagon is unavailable or the folks current don’t know how you can administer it, they need to name 911 instantly.
Put on a medical ID
Folks with diabetes, particularly these utilizing insulin, ought to carry a medical ID always.
In emergencies akin to extreme hypoglycemia or accidents, a medical ID supplies important data, together with diabetes standing, insulin use, and allergic reactions.
Emergency personnel are educated to search for these IDs when an individual is unable to speak.
Medical IDs are sometimes worn as bracelets or necklaces and might be engraved with key well being particulars, with some now providing USB drives to retailer full medical information.
Use fast-acting carbs
Keep away from slow-digesting meals like chocolate bars; as a substitute, select quick-absorbing carbs akin to glucose tabs, gummy sweet, juice, or honey to lift blood glucose rapidly.
Be taught extra in: Easy methods to Deal with Lows as Shortly as Doable.
Deal with with 5 to fifteen grams of carbs
For delicate lows (round 65 mg/dL), 5 grams might suffice. Extra extreme lows (55 mg/dL and dropping) might have 15 grams or extra relying on insulin ranges. Be affected person — test your meter earlier than consuming extra to keep away from overtreatment.
Learn extra in: What’s Thought of Low Blood Sugar?
Preserve fast-acting carbs in all places
Top off on fast carbs in locations like your nightstand, purse, automobile, or workplace to make sure you’re at all times ready, particularly in excessive temperatures the place some meals would possibly spoil.
Keep away from binge-eating
It’s frequent to overeat throughout lows, however this could trigger a glucose spike, guilt, and the necessity for extra insulin, which can result in one other low. Acknowledge this cycle from my guide, “Emotional Consuming with Diabetes,” and concentrate on more healthy low remedies.
Navigating the complexities of low blood sugar
Low blood sugars generally is a actual problem. For these taking insulin or different glucose-lowering medicines, they’re usually an inevitable a part of diabetes administration.
One of the best method is to establish areas for changes to stop lows and at all times have fast-acting carbohydrates available for therapy after they happen.
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