What are the dangers of low blood sugar (hypoglycemia)?. How can you recognize and treat the symptoms of hypoglycemia?. What can you do to prevent hypoglycemic episodes?.

The Hypoglycemia-Diabetes Connection

Your body converts carbohydrates in foods like fruits, vegetables, dairy, and bread products into glucose, which requires insulin to transport it into cells and tissues for energy. Normally, when your blood sugar levels drop too low, your body either produces more glucose or releases extra glucose that has been stored in the liver and muscles. However, in some patients with diabetes, this response to normalize glucose is impaired. Certain medications used to treat diabetes, such as insulin, can also prevent glucose levels from easily returning to the normal range.

Recognizing the Warning Signs of Hypoglycemia

For patients with diabetes, hypoglycemia occurs when there’s too much insulin in your system. This can happen if you eat less than normal, skip meals, exercise more than usual, or don’t eat enough carbohydrates for the amount of insulin (or other diabetes medication) that you take. When this happens, you can experience symptoms like sweating, shaking, fast heartbeat, feelings of nervousness or anxiety, dizziness, hunger, and irritability.

Some people, particularly those with type 1 diabetes, who experience repeated episodes of hypoglycemia, may develop hypoglycemia unawareness. This is when you no longer experience the typical symptoms of low blood sugar and are therefore less likely to treat it. Hypoglycemia unawareness is dangerous and puts you at risk for developing severe symptoms like clumsiness, confusion, seizures, fainting, and even death.

Treating Low Blood Sugar

Your treatment for hypoglycemia depends on the severity of your symptoms. If your symptoms are relatively mild, you’ll want to follow the 15-15 rule: Eat or drink 15 grams of glucose or carbohydrates, wait 15 minutes, then check your blood sugar. If it’s still too low, repeat this process until it’s back to your target range.

If you’re prone to severe hypoglycemia, eating or drinking won’t be enough. In this case, your doctor will prescribe glucagon, a hormone that raises your blood sugar levels, which can be given as a nasal powder or by injection. Your doctor may also recommend keeping an emergency glucagon kit with you and checking it periodically to ensure it’s stocked and the medication hasn’t expired.

Preventing Hypoglycemic Episodes

The best way to prevent hypoglycemia is to detect low blood sugar before you develop serious symptoms. You can do this with a meter or continuous glucose monitor (CGM). Here are some other things you can do:

• Time your medications: Always take diabetes medication in the recommended dosage and at the recommended time. Some diabetes medications can cause hypoglycemia.
• Watch what you eat: Following a meal plan is important for managing diabetes. Have enough food during each meal, avoid skipping meals, and try healthy snacking.
• Exercise responsibly: Check your blood glucose before sports, exercise, or other physical activity and adjust medication if necessary. Have a snack handy if your levels fall below 100 mg/dL.
• Limit alcohol consumption: Drinking a lot of alcohol, especially on an empty stomach, can block your liver from releasing stored glucose into your bloodstream.

Maintaining Healthy Blood Sugar Levels

Managing your blood sugar starts with being vigilant about monitoring your levels and taking appropriate action to prevent or treat hypoglycemia. By following these strategies, you can work with your healthcare team to keep your blood sugar in a healthy range and avoid the dangerous complications of low blood sugar.

The Importance of Communication with Your Healthcare Team

Regularly communicating with your healthcare team is crucial for managing your diabetes and preventing hypoglycemic episodes. Be sure to inform your doctor or pharmacist about any changes in your medication, diet, or exercise routine, as well as any concerns or challenges you’re experiencing. Together, you can develop a personalized plan to effectively manage your blood sugar levels and minimize the risks of hypoglycemia.

Continuous Glucose Monitoring: A Game-Changer for Hypoglycemia Management

Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices have revolutionized the way people with diabetes manage their blood sugar levels. These tools provide real-time data on your glucose levels, allowing you to detect and respond to hypoglycemic episodes quickly. By using a CGM, you can gain valuable insights into your body’s unique response to various factors, empowering you to make more informed decisions about your diabetes management.

Dangers of Low Blood Sugar (Hypoglycemia)

Your blood sugar fluctuates throughout the day, going up or down depending on the food you eat, how much you exercise, the medications you take, and even your stress level.

Most of the time you probably won’t notice these fluctuations because they’re within what’s considered a target range. Blood sugar below 70 mg/DL is considered low and can be dangerous especially if you have diabetes.

Low blood sugar is called hypoglycemia and it’s especially common among patients with diabetes who take certain types of medications. A large global study found that 4 out of every 5 patients with type 1 diabetes, and nearly half of those with type 2 diabetes, reported low blood sugar at least once over a four-week period.¹

As long as you’re aware of the symptoms of hypoglycemia, there are plenty of things you can do to bring your blood sugar back to a healthy level. However, if left untreated, hypoglycemia can cause serious side effects and potentially land you in the hospital.

The hypoglycemia-diabetes connection

Your body converts carbohydrates in foods like fruits, vegetables, dairy, and bread products into glucose, and requires insulin to transport it into cells and tissues for energy. Normally, when your blood sugar levels drop too low, your body either produces more glucose or releases extra glucose that has been stored in the liver and muscles.

However, in some patients with diabetes, this response to normalize glucose is impaired. Certain medications used to treat diabetes, such as insulin, can also prevent glucose levels from easily returning to the normal range.

What are the warning signs and symptoms of low blood sugar?

For patients with diabetes, hypoglycemia occurs when there’s too much insulin in your system. This can happen if you eat less than normal, skip meals, exercise more than usual, or don’t eat enough carbohydrates for the amount of insulin (or other diabetes medication) that you take. When this happens, you can experience symptoms like sweating, shaking, fast heartbeat, feelings of nervousness or anxiety, dizziness, hunger, and irritability.

Some people, particularly those with type 1 diabetes, who experience repeated episodes of hypoglycemia, may develop hypoglycemia unawareness. This is when you no longer experience the typical symptoms of low blood sugar and are therefore less likely to treat it. Hypoglycemia unawareness is dangerous and puts you at risk for developing severe symptoms like clumsiness, confusion, seizures, fainting, and even death.

How to treat low blood sugar

Your treatment for hypoglycemia depends on the severity of your symptoms. If your symptoms are relatively mild, you’ll want to follow the 15-15 rule. Eat or drink 15 grams of glucose or carbohydrates, wait 15 minutes, then check your blood sugar. If it’s still too low, repeat this process until it’s back to your target range.

Eating or drinking won’t be enough if you’re prone to severe hypoglycemia. In this case, your doctor will prescribe glucagon. Glucagon is a hormone that raises your blood sugar levels and can be given as a nasal powder or by injection. Your doctor may also recommend keeping an emergency glucagon kit with you. Just remember to check your kit periodically to ensure that it’s stocked and that the medication hasn’t expired.

How to prevent hypoglycemia

The best way to prevent hypoglycemia is to detect low blood sugar before you develop serious symptoms. You can do this with a meter or continuous glucose monitor (CGM). Here are some other things you can do:

• Time your medications. As with all medications, always take diabetes medication in the recommended dosage and at the recommended time. Some diabetes medications can cause hypoglycemia. If you have any questions, your doctor or pharmacist can help explain how and when to take these medications.
• Watch what you eat. Following a meal plan is important for managing diabetes. Have enough food during each meal, avoid skipping meals, and try healthy snacking. If you are struggling with your food intake, work with a registered dietitian who can help design a meal plan that fits your personal preferences and lifestyle. Eating right will help you manage your diabetes.
• Exercise responsibly. Check your blood glucose before sports, exercise, or other physical activity and adjust medication if necessary. Have a snack handy if your levels fall below 100 mg/dL. Also, check blood glucose at regular intervals during extended periods of physical activity and periodically after physical activity, and adjust medications if necessary.
• Limit alcohol consumption. Drinking a lot of alcohol, especially on an empty stomach, can block your liver from releasing stored glucose into your bloodstream. If you want a drink, do so in moderation and with a snack or meal.

Helping you manage your blood sugar

Managing your blood sugar starts with getting a strong handle on your diabetes. Express Scripts® Pharmacy gives you 24/7 access to specially trained pharmacists who understand the complexities of your condition and can give you personalized care and guidance to manage your therapy.

1 National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases: Low Blood Glucose (Hypoglycemia) (accessed February 2022): https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/diabetes/overview/preventing-problems/low-blood-glucose-hypoglycemia.

Updated: June 23, 2023

Posted date: April 12, 2022

Low blood sugar – self-care: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia

Low blood sugar is a condition that occurs when your blood sugar (glucose) is lower than normal. Low blood sugar may occur in people with diabetes who are taking insulin or certain other medicines to control their diabetes. Low blood sugar can cause dangerous symptoms. Learn how to recognize the symptoms of low blood sugar and how to prevent them.

Low blood sugar is called hypoglycemia. A blood sugar level below 70 mg/dL (3. 9 mmol/L) is low and can harm you. A blood sugar level below 54 mg/dL (3.0 mmol/L) is a cause for immediate action.

You are at risk for low blood sugar if you have diabetes and are taking any of the following diabetes medicines:

• Insulin
• Glyburide (Micronase), glipizide (Glucotrol), glimepiride (Amaryl), repaglinide (Prandin), or nateglinide (Starlix)
• Chlorpropamide (Diabinese), tolazamide (Tolinase), acetohexamide (Dymelor), or tolbutamide (Orinase)

You are also at increased risk of having low blood sugar if you have had previous low blood sugar levels.

Know how to tell when your blood sugar is getting low. Symptoms include:

• Weakness or feeling tired
• Shaking
• Sweating
• Headache
• Hunger
• Feeling uneasy, nervous, or anxious
• Feeling cranky
• Trouble thinking clearly
• Double or blurry vision
• Fast or pounding heartbeat

Sometimes your blood sugar may be too low even if you do not have symptoms. If it gets too low, you may:

• Faint
• Have a seizure
• Go into a coma

Some people who have had diabetes for a long time stop being able to sense low blood sugar. This is called hypoglycemic unawareness. Ask your health care provider if wearing a continuous glucose monitor and sensor can help you detect when your blood sugar is getting too low in order to help prevent symptoms.

Talk with your provider about when you should check your blood sugar every day. People who have low blood sugar need to check their blood sugar more often.

The most common causes of low blood sugar are:

• Taking your insulin or diabetes medicine at the wrong time
• Taking too much insulin or diabetes medicine
• Taking insulin to correct high blood sugar without eating any food
• Not eating enough during meals or snacks after you have taken insulin or diabetes medicine
• Skipping meals (this may mean that your dose of long-acting insulin is too high, so you should talk to your provider)
• Waiting too long after taking your medicine to eat your meals
• Exercising a lot or at a time that is unusual for you
• Not checking your blood sugar or not adjusting your insulin dose before exercising
• Drinking alcohol

Preventing low blood sugar is better than having to treat it. Always have a source of fast-acting sugar with you.

• When you exercise, check your blood sugar levels. Make sure you have snacks with you.
• Talk to your provider about reducing insulin doses on days that you exercise.
• Ask your provider if you need a bedtime snack to prevent low blood sugar overnight. Protein snacks may be best.

Do not drink alcohol without eating food. Women should limit alcohol to 1 drink a day and men should limit alcohol to 2 drinks a day. Family and friends should know how to help. They should know:

• The symptoms of low blood sugar and how to tell if you have them.
• How much and what kind of food they should give you.
• When to call for emergency help.
• How to inject glucagon, a hormone that increases your blood sugar. Your provider will tell you when to use this medicine.

If you have diabetes, always wear a medical alert bracelet or necklace. This helps emergency medical workers know you have diabetes.

Check your blood sugar whenever you have symptoms of low blood sugar. If your blood sugar is below 70 mg/dL, treat yourself right away.

1. Eat something that has about 15 grams (g) of carbohydrates. Examples are:

• 3 glucose tablets
• One half cup (4 ounces or 237 mL) of fruit juice or regular, non-diet soda
• 5 or 6 hard candies
• 1 tablespoon (tbsp) or 15 mL of sugar, plain or dissolved in water
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) of honey or syrup

2. Wait about 15 minutes before eating any more. Be careful not to eat too much. This can cause high blood sugar and weight gain.

3. Check your blood sugar again.

4. If you do not feel better in 15 minutes and your blood sugar is still lower than 70 mg/dL (3.9 mmol/L), eat another snack with 15 g of carbohydrates.

You may need to eat a snack with carbohydrates and protein if your blood sugar is in a safer range — over 70 mg/dL (3.9 mmol/L) — and your next meal is more than an hour away.

Ask your provider how to manage this situation. If these steps for raising your blood sugar do not work, call your doctor right away.

If you use insulin and your blood sugar is frequently or consistently low, ask your doctor or nurse if you:

• Are injecting your insulin the right way
• Need a different type of needle
• Should change how much insulin you take
• Should change the kind of insulin you take

Do not make any changes without talking to your doctor or nurse first.

Sometimes hypoglycemia can be due to accidently taking the wrong medicines. Check your medicines with your pharmacist.

If signs of low blood sugar do not improve after you have eaten a snack that contains sugar, have someone drive you to the emergency room or call 911 or the local emergency number. Do not drive when your blood sugar is low.

Get medical help right away for a person with low blood sugar if the person is not alert or cannot be woken up as this is a medical emergency.

Hypoglycemia – self care; Low blood glucose – self care

• Medical alert bracelet
• Glucose test

American Diabetes Association Professional Practice Committee; Draznin B, Aroda VR, et al. 6. Glycemic Targets: Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes-2022. Diabetes Care. 2022;45(Suppl 1):S83-S96. PMID: 34964868 pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34964868/.

Cryer PE, Arbeláez AM. Hypoglycemia. In: Melmed S, Auchus RJ, Goldfine AB, Koenig RJ, Rosen CJ, eds. Williams Textbook of Endocrinology. 14th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 38.

• Type 1 diabetes
• Type 2 diabetes

• ACE inhibitors
• Diabetes and exercise
• Diabetes eye care
• Diabetes – foot ulcers
• Diabetes – keeping active
• Diabetes – preventing heart attack and stroke
• Diabetes – taking care of your feet
• Diabetes tests and checkups
• Diabetes – when you are sick
• Managing your blood sugar
• Type 2 diabetes – what to ask your doctor

Updated by: Sandeep K. Dhaliwal, MD, board-certified in Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Metabolism, Springfield, VA. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.

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Blood sugar test

Determining the level of glucose (or sugar) in the blood is necessary for diagnosing diabetes, as well as for monitoring the condition of patients with this disease. In addition, this test plays an important role in assessing the state of health in general. Increased rates that persist for a long time have a negative impact on the internal organs and systems of the body. In the absence of timely treatment, pathological changes become irreversible.

Glucose is one of the substances that are vital for the functioning of the body. In the process of oxidation, it turns into energy used by the body. Without energy, the brain, muscles and heart cannot function.

General

Sugar is present in many tissues and organs. Without it, the body cannot function. An excess, like a lack of glucose, is fraught with negative health consequences. Sugar can enter the cells only under the action of insulin. If this hormone is not produced enough or the sensitivity to it is disturbed, diabetes develops. The concentration of the hormone depends on the amount of food taken and on its composition. Thanks to the action of insulin, the sugar level is kept relatively stable. The imbalance leads to significant health problems. Extreme forms of lack or excess of sugar can cause coma or death.

Indications for examination

If diabetes is suspected, a glucose test is done first. It is also used to detect a pre-diabetic condition. Determination of the amount of sugar plays an important role in the diagnosis of diseases of the pancreas, adrenal glands, thyroid gland. This indicator must be monitored in patients with obesity, as well as during pregnancy.

In the absence of health complaints, a blood glucose test is included in the preventive examination program. This makes it possible to identify the disease at an early stage or a high risk of its development, and start treatment in a timely manner. It is especially important to control sugar even in the absence of health complaints for people who have risk factors for diabetes (hereditary predisposition, smoking, low physical activity, alcohol abuse, overweight, etc.).

Study preparation

Blood for analysis must be taken strictly on an empty stomach after 8-14 hours of fasting, preferably in the morning. Before the study, it is allowed to drink only non-carbonated water. Do not smoke for half an hour before donating blood. At this time, you need to exclude significant physical activity, avoid stressful situations.

Interpretation of blood sugar test results

The analysis is carried out both for adults and children. When interpreting the results, the age of the patient must be taken into account. For newborns, it is taken into account whether the child was born full-term or not. For adults, reference values ​​are 3.9-5.83 mmol/l. Children have their own rules.

The danger to health is both an excess of sugar and its deficiency. High levels can cause the development of diabetes, kidney and liver damage, cardiogenic shock. It should be borne in mind that an excess of the norm can be observed with severe or chronic stress, even in the absence of pathologies. A decrease in indicators is observed with insufficient production of a number of hormones, oncology, diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, pancreas.

The price of the analysis differs depending on the type of study (an independent test or a complex of biochemical studies). In any case, the cost is low. The test results have a high diagnostic value in detecting diabetes and a number of other pathologies. They are also important for monitoring the progress of treatment.

How to keep your blood sugar normal

An increase in blood sugar negatively affects the health of any person, especially when it comes to diabetics. In addition to the well-known “pests” – sweets, chocolate, cookies and sweets – a number of factors can affect the growth of glucose and cause serious harm to the body.

Author
Elena Levina

An increase in blood sugar levels negatively affects the health of any person, especially when it comes to diabetics. In addition to the well-known “pests” – sweets, chocolate, cookies and sweets – a number of factors can affect the growth of glucose and cause serious harm to the body. Even in perfectly healthy people, excessive consumption of sweets can, over time, cause the body to lose its natural ability to balance blood sugar.

Let’s talk about things that will easily raise your blood sugar

Sugar-free foods

Strange as it may sound, sugar-free foods can cause sugar to rise. Most of these products contain carbohydrates, fats and starches. It has long been known that carbohydrates are the component that seriously affects the undesirable increase in glucose. So it is not surprising that such products bring significant harm to our organs.

Chinese food

Chinese food, very trendy these days, can also have a significant impact on blood sugar balance. It is oversaturated with fats, which are able to maintain a high level of sugar for quite a long time, which is very dangerous for the body. Among other things, Chinese food, especially fast food, contains a large amount of carbohydrates. The combination is deadly for our body! Other fast food products – pizza, french fries, hamburgers – are no less dangerous for our health.

Energy drinks

When you exercise hard, they allow our body to recover faster by replenishing the lack of fluids. But it is important to know one essential fact. The basis of such drinks is sugar, which is necessary during intensive training, but if you are not a professional athlete and do not spend a lot of energy, there is no reason to drink energy drinks instead of water.

Dried fruits

Dried fruits are really very useful, but not for diabetics. They contain an incomparably large amount of sugar in relation to their size and quantity. Just a few fruits are enough for the sugar level to jump sharply.

There are a few tricks to help you balance your sugar.

First of all – moderate physical activity

This does not mean that exhausting daily workouts should be your goal. It is enough to slightly increase your daily activities: do house cleaning, laundry or gardening. Even quite moderate exercise can significantly lower blood sugar levels and make life easier for a diabetic.

Yoghurt

All yogurts contain probiotics, microorganisms that support the immune system and aid digestion. Ultimately, their constant use leads to a decrease in sugar in the body. But, of course, you need to beware of sweet yoghurts with fillers.

Vegetarian

Studies show that people who cut out animal meat, including milk and eggs, have much better blood sugar balance and require less insulin. One theory is that it may be because plant foods are high in fiber, which slows down the breakdown of carbohydrates, thereby causing slow and controlled absorption of sugar into the bloodstream.

Cinnamon

It has long been known from grandmother’s recipes that cinnamon is an excellent folk remedy for diabetes. Today, scientific research confirms this. Cinnamon contains naturally occurring chemicals that help maintain proper blood sugar levels.

Some more important points

– Birth control pills can have a big effect on blood sugar levels. If you are a diabetic, be sure to check with your doctor.
– Some diabetics may experience a lack of sugar at night, and therefore it is advisable for them to have a light nightly snack. For others, it may jump early in the morning after waking up due to hormonal changes in the body. In such cases, you should definitely talk to your doctor or nutritionist.
– High-intensity physical training can cause glucose levels to spike – that is, cause a jump from very high to very low, which is undesirable and can be dangerous.