Everything You Need To Know About Hypoglycemia

In this article, we will know the meaning, cause, and symptoms along with the ways of preventing and treating hypoglycemia.

What is Hypoglycemia?

Hypoglycemia literally means low blood sugar. This can happen due to sickness, certain medications, insulin, exercise and fasting.

A person is said to have hypoglycemia when the blood sugar drops lower than 70 mg/dL.

Symptoms of hypoglycemia can be observed only when the blood glucose levels drop below 70 mg/dL. Above this, a person may have asymptomatic hypoglycemia or hypoglycemia unawareness.

Causes of Hypoglycemia

In people with diabetes, hypoglycemia may occur due to insulin administration or other medication, symptomatic hypoglycemia could occur twice a week in type 1 diabetes patients, however asymptomatic hypoglycemia may occur more frequently in diabetic patients where constant monitoring of blood glucose becomes very important.
Administering the wrong insulin or injecting too much insulin or directly injecting it into the muscle may lead to hypoglycemia in insulin users.
Diet: Eating a very low carbohydrate diet without adjusting the amount of insulin.
Exercise: The intensity and duration of exercise in people with diabetes or people on a low-carb diet may cause hypoglycemia. In over 50% of children with type 1 diabetes, when exercise is done during the day, hypoglycemia is observed overnight.

How to know if you have low blood sugar or hypoglycemia?

Symptoms of hypoglycemia may include –

Feeling sweaty, pale and lightheaded
Dizziness
Blurry vision
Irregular or fast heartbeat
Nightmares or sudden awakenings
Inability to eat or drink
Seizures or convulsions in extreme cases
Fainting
Headache
Problems in coordination
Weakness
Confusion
Irritability
Constant hunger
Numbness

You might also experience hypoglycemic unawareness where your body does not show any signs that your blood sugar levels are dropping. This can lead to dangerously low blood sugar levels, leading to organ damage or death in severe cases.

Hypoglycemia unawareness is usually observed in those who-

Whose blood sugar levels drop frequently
Have been diabetic for a long time
Have not changed their insulin or diabetic medication when they have made significant lifestyle changes

Is Hypoglycemia only observed in diabetic patients?

Hypoglycemia can be observed in non-diabetic people, in people who are not administered insulin or medications. Non-diabetic hypoglycemia can occur as a complication of certain endocrine disorders like Addison’s disease, due to kidney or liver failure and also due to fasting. Reactive hypoglycemia can occur when meals that are extremely high in carbohydrates are consumed. Non-diabetic hypoglycemia can also occur due to malnutrition, fasting or intense workouts without supplementing with enough nutrition or calories required for the exercise.

Special cases of Hypoglycemia:

Neonatal hypoglycemia: Neonatal hypoglycemia occurs when a newborn’s blood sugar is very low. This may be caused due to premature birth, diabetic mother, slow growth of the baby during pregnancy etc. The most common symptoms include sleep apnea or pauses in breathing, hypothermia or low body temperature, paleness, irritability or poor feeding. Neonatal hypoglycemia is diagnosed through a serum glucose test and treated through the administration of sugar solution or glucose until the baby has normal blood glucose levels. If the newborn continues to have hypoglycemia it could be due to hyperinsulinism where a part of the pancreas may have to be removed to reduce insulin production.

Nocturnal hypoglycemia: It is the hypoglycemia that occurs while asleep and the patient may only know they have nocturnal hypoglycemia when they keep waking up in the middle of the night due to the symptoms. The treatment of nocturnal hypoglycemia is consuming enough carbohydrates throughout the day and/or having a snack before sleeping that is rich in sugar or carbohydrate to maintain sugar levels and to prevent the dropping of glucose levels overnight.

Since we might or might not experience symptoms, we cannot rely on symptoms for diagnosing hypoglycemia, so the only sure way to know if you are hypoglycemia is by testing with a glucometer that is approved by the FDA.

Treating hypoglycemia –

For treating hypoglycemia, the “15-15” rule is recommended, wherein the patient needs to have 15 grams of carbohydrates every 15 minutes until the blood glucose levels are at least at 70 mg/dL. Make sure you have a meal after your blood glucose levels are normal, to prevent the lowering of blood sugar levels again. Glucagon injection may also be administered which helps in raising blood glucose levels through catabolic or energy-releasing reactions in the body.

Preventing hypoglycemia –

It is crucial to monitor your blood sugar at regular intervals if you are diabetic or suffer from hypoglycemia
Maintain a balanced diet
Make sure you don’t over-strain your body or exercise intensely on a regular basis, consult an expert before you design your exercise regime

Wrapping up –

If you are experiencing constant low blood sugar levels then consult a diabetes specialist to know what the cause is and how you can work through to maintain normal blood glucose levels, be it through reducing your insulin dosage or moderating lifestyle habits.