Hypoglycemia or Low Blood Sugar

Low blood sugar or hypoglycemia (usually a blood sugar level of less than 4 mmol/L) can happen when diabetes medicine (pills or insulin), food, and exercise are out of balance. Low blood sugar can be mild, moderate, or severe. These tips will help you to prevent and treat low blood sugar.

Low blood sugar or hypoglycemia (usually a blood sugar level of less than 4 mmol/L) can happen when diabetes medicine (pills or insulin), food, and exercise are out of balance. Low blood sugar can be mild, moderate, or severe. These tips will help you to prevent and treat low blood sugar.

In medical terms, hypoglycemia is defined in relation to its cause. Functional hypoglycemia, the kind we are addressing here, is the oversecretion of insulin by the pancreas in response to a rapid rise in blood sugar or "glucose".

Causes of Hypoglycemia

Insulin: When the insulin shot and the food intake do not match there is much possibility that there may be an episode of hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia. Dosage is not the only important factor but adjusting time according to meal intake on regular basis is also a crucial feature.

Alcohol: Binge intake of alcohol, can cause hypoglycemia because your body''s breakdown of alcohol interferes with your liver''s efficiency to raise blood glucose. Alcohol intake also affects the pancreas production (insulin), ultimately increasing more chances of hypoglycemia in future.

Hypoglycemia Symptoms

Because epinephrine, one of the hormones that is activated by hypoglycemia, comes from the central nervous system, the majority of early symptoms of hypoglycemia are related to the nervous system.

Hypoglycemic symptoms and manifestations can be divided into those produced by the counterregulatory hormones (epinephrine/adrenaline and glucagon) triggered by the falling glucose, and the neuroglycopenic effects produced by the reduced brain sugar.

Prevention

Your diabetes treatment plan is designed to match your medication dosage and schedule to your usual meals and activities. If you take insulin but then skip a meal, the insulin will still lower your blood glucose, but it will not find the food it is designed to break down. This mismatch might result in hypoglycemia.

Treatment

The acute management of hypoglycemia involves the rapid delivery of a source of easily absorbed sugar. Regular soda, juice, lifesavers, table sugar, and the like are good options. In general, 10-15 grams of glucose is used, followed by an assessment of symptoms and a blood glucose check if possible. If after 10 minutes there is no improvement, another 10-15 grams should be given.

Treatment for Low Blood Sugar using Vitamins

Certain vitamins have been found effective in the treatment of low blood sugar. These are vitamins C, E, and B complex. Foods rich in these vitamins are therefore valuable in low blood sugar. Vitamins C and B increase tolerance of sugar and carbohydrates, and help normalise sugar metabolism, Pantothenic acid and vitamin B6 help to build up adrenals which are generally exhausted in persons with low blood sugar. Vitamin E improves glycogen storage in the muscles and tissues. The patient should take vitamin C in large doses from 2,000 to 5,000 mg B6 - 50 mg, and vitamin E - upto 1600 IU daily

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