I want low blood sugar. Possible causes of low blood sugar

One of the most important nutritional components of the body is glucose (or sugar), the main purpose of which is to provide energy for the vital functions of tissues and the brain. The energy required for tissues is produced during the oxidative chemical reaction of glucose. Contents from 3.3 to 5.5 mmol/l are considered standard values. Low blood sugar is one of the common signs of malaise and weakness.

In cases where blood glucose is diagnosed to be less than 3.3 mmol/l, a disease is referred to as hypoglycemia. This condition occurs both at a higher level and at a lower one: in those who are sick, and a similar phenomenon is also observed in some healthy people. In such situations, the diagnosis takes into account the individual characteristics of the body, which can be determined both physiologically and psychologically.

Symptoms

When hypoglycemia is observed, symptoms of low glucose levels most often appear in the early morning after a night's sleep and are expressed in general weakness, irritability and drowsiness (provided full sleep).

If it occurs in the body after finishing a meal, then this may be a symptom of the development of diabetes mellitus, which manifests itself in malaise and severe fatigue, a feeling of irritability, sweating, also in the form of chills or, conversely, a feeling of heat, muscle weakness and hand tremors, in the most advanced cases - and vision.

Malaise and severe fatigue

The reasons for the decline are easily diagnosed, and in most cases can be easily corrected. These include: various types of unbalanced diets and fasting, violations of the diet (significant breaks in food intake), excessive consumption of carbohydrate foods: sweet pastries, rolls, candy products, jams and preserves, fruit juices and refined white rice. In addition, this phenomenon can be provoked by constant increased physical activity.

Among other things, blood hypoglycemia can be caused by diseases such as hypothyroidism, diabetes mellitus, the presence of a tumor in the body, liver damage and kidney failure, and alcohol intoxication.

Diagnostics

The quantitative content of sugar in the blood is also tested at home.

(glucose) early in the morning. Blood is drawn from a finger. For self-measurement at home, a device such as a glucometer is used.

To obtain a reliable result, you must follow a number of rules:

• Before testing for the presence of sugar, the piercing site is thoroughly treated with an alcohol-containing liquid. If the analysis is carried out, you must wash your hands thoroughly with soap. This procedure is necessary both for disinfection and to increase blood circulation at the collection site.
• Blood can be taken from both the fingers of the left and right hand. Typically, the puncture is made on the pads of one of three fingers: the little finger, ring finger or middle finger.
• If blood is taken frequently, puncture sites need to be changed.
• In order for the result to be reliable, the first drop of blood that appears at the puncture site is removed.

In particularly complex and severe cases, to diagnose low blood sugar, the doctor may prescribe fasting, which can be short-term (one night) or long-term (for two days).

Making a diagnosis of hypoglycemia is accompanied by collecting the patient’s medical history: studying the medical history, information about weight changes, dietary habits and medications. In addition, the liver and kidneys are palpated, and the skin is examined for pigmentation features and the presence of swelling.

Treatment

If low blood sugar is detected during diagnosis, what to do and what measures to take to normalize it?

Treatment of low blood sugar can be carried out with the prescription of medications (in particularly difficult cases) or in a more gentle mode, consisting of a balanced and regular diet and reduced physical activity.

Be sure to include glucose-containing foods in your diet: grains, some vegetables (including corn, beets, peas, potatoes), fermented milk products, berries, fruits and honey.

It must be borne in mind that if a decrease in blood sugar occurs in diabetic patients, treatment is prescribed only by a doctor; taking foods and medications that increase blood sugar on your own is strictly prohibited.

First aid

A sharp drop in blood sugar levels is a rather dangerous phenomenon not only for the person himself, but also for those around him, since this condition affects the nervous system, as a result of which orientation in space can be disrupted, loss of creation, disruption of coherent speech and vision is possible.

If, for example, a drop in glucose in a person’s body occurs suddenly while driving, then there is a high probability of accidents and injuries.

In order to quickly raise blood sugar, it is recommended to eat something sweet, for example, candy, honey or jam, a piece of sugar, or drink a glass of fruit juice or a carbonated drink.

Therefore, it is important to be able to recognize in time the symptoms of low blood sugar, indicating a drop in blood glucose, and take urgent measures to increase it.

The level of sugar in the blood determines the quality of the body's functioning. After consuming sugar and carbohydrates, the body converts them into glucose, a component that represents the main and most versatile source of energy. The human body needs such energy to ensure the normal performance of various functions from the functioning of neurons to processes that occur at the cellular level. A decrease, and even more so an increase in blood sugar levels provokes the appearance of unpleasant symptoms. Systematically elevated blood glucose levels predict the development of diabetes mellitus.

What is sugar level

Blood sugar levels are calculated in mmol per liter, less often in milligrams per deciliter. The normal blood sugar level for a healthy person is 3.6-5.8 mmol/l. For each patient, the final indicator is individual, in addition, the value changes depending on the intake of food, especially sweet and high in simple carbohydrates. Naturally, such changes are not considered pathological and are short-term in nature.

How the body regulates sugar levels

It is important that your sugar level is within normal limits. A strong decrease or strong increase in blood glucose should not be allowed; the consequences can be serious and dangerous to the life and health of the patient - loss of consciousness up to coma, diabetes mellitus.

Principles for how the body controls sugar levels:

To maintain normal glucose concentrations, the pancreas secretes two hormones - insulin and glucagon or polypeptide hormone.

Insulin

Insulin is a hormone produced by pancreatic cells, releasing it in response to the supply of glucose. Insulin is needed by most cells in the human body, including muscle cells, liver cells, and fat cells. The hormone is a protein that consists of 51 different amino acids.

Insulin performs the following functions:

• sends a signal to the muscles and liver cells to accumulate (accumulate) converted glucose in the form of glycogen;
• Helps fat cells produce fat by converting fatty acids and glycerol;
• gives a signal to the kidneys and liver to stop secreting their own glucose through the metabolic process - gluconeogenesis;
• stimulates muscle cells and liver cells to secrete protein from amino acids.

The main purpose of insulin is to help the body absorb nutrients after eating, thereby lowering blood sugar, fat and amino acid levels.

Glucagon

Glucagon is a protein produced by alpha cells. Glucagon has the opposite effect of insulin on blood sugar levels. When the concentration of glucose in the blood decreases, the hormone signals muscle cells and liver cells to activate glucose as glycogen through glycogenolysis. Glucagon stimulates the kidneys and liver to secrete their own glucose.

As a result, the hormone glucagon takes glucose from several organs and maintains it at a sufficient level. If this does not happen, blood sugar levels drop below normal levels.

Diabetes

Sometimes the body malfunctions under the influence of external or internal unfavorable factors, due to which disturbances primarily concern the metabolic process. As a result of such disorders, the pancreas stops producing the hormone insulin sufficiently, the body's cells react to it incorrectly, and ultimately the blood sugar level increases. This metabolic disorder is called diabetes mellitus.

Blood sugar levels: table for healthy people and diabetics

Sugar standards for children and adults differ, but for women and men they are practically the same. The value of blood glucose concentration is influenced by whether a person takes the test on an empty stomach or after a meal.

In adults

The permissible blood sugar level for women is 3.5-5.8 mmol/l (the same for representatives of the stronger sex), these values ​​are typical for analysis carried out in the morning on an empty stomach. The given indicators are correct for taking blood from a finger. Analysis from a vein suggests normal values ​​from 3.7 to 6.1 mmol/l. An increase in readings to 6.9 from a vein and to 6 from a finger indicates a condition called prediabetes. Prediabetes is a state of impaired glucose tolerance and impaired glycemia. If blood sugar levels are more than 6.1 from a finger and 7 from a vein, the patient is diagnosed with diabetes mellitus.

In some cases, a blood test must be taken immediately, and there is a high probability that the patient has already consumed the food. In this case, blood sugar levels in adults will vary from 4 to 7.8 mmol/l. Departure from the norm to a lesser or greater extent requires additional analysis.

In children

In children, blood sugar levels vary depending on the age of the children. In newborns, normal values ​​range from 2.8 to 4.4 mmol/l. For children aged 1-5 years, values ​​from 3.3 to 5.0 mmol/liter are considered normal. The blood sugar level in children over five years of age is identical to that in adults. Indicators exceeding 6.1 mmol/liter indicate the presence of diabetes mellitus.

In pregnant women

With the onset of pregnancy, the body finds new ways of working; at first it is difficult to adapt to new reactions; failures often occur, as a result of which the results of many analyzes and tests deviate from the norm. Blood sugar levels differ from normal values ​​for an adult. Blood sugar standards for women expecting a baby range from 3.8 to 5.8 mmol/liter. If a higher value is obtained, the woman is prescribed additional tests.

Sometimes during pregnancy the condition of gestational diabetes occurs. This pathological process occurs in the second half of pregnancy and goes away on its own after the baby is born. However, if certain risk factors are present, gestational diabetes may develop into diabetes mellitus after the baby is born. In order to prevent the development of a serious illness, it is necessary to constantly take blood tests for sugar and follow the doctor’s recommendations.

Blood Sugar Tables

Below are summary tables with information about the concentration of sugar in the blood and its significance for human health.

Note! The information presented is not 100% accurate, since each patient is individual.

Blood sugar norms - table:

Normal blood sugar levels and deviations from it with a brief description:

Blood glucose concentration values ​​relative to health risks. Values ​​are given in mmol/liter, mg/dl, and for the HbA1c test.

Signs of high sugar levels

When a healthy person’s blood sugar rises, he feels unpleasant symptoms; as a result of the development of diabetes mellitus, clinical symptoms intensify, and other diseases may occur against the background of the disease. If you do not consult a doctor at the first signs of a metabolic disorder, you may miss the onset of the disease; in this case, it will be impossible to cure diabetes mellitus, since with this disease you can only maintain a normal state.

Important! The main sign of high blood sugar is a feeling of thirst. The patient is constantly thirsty, his kidneys work more actively to filter out excess sugar, while they take moisture from tissues and cells, so a feeling of thirst arises.

Other signs of high sugar levels:

• increased urge to go to the toilet, increased fluid output, which is due to more active kidney function;
• dryness of the oral mucosa;
• itching of the skin;
• itching of the mucous membranes, most pronounced in the intimate organs;
• dizziness;
• general weakness of the body, increased fatigue.

Symptoms of high blood sugar are not always obvious. Sometimes the disease can progress indirectly; such a latent course of pathology is much more dangerous than the variant with a pronounced clinical picture. For patients, the discovery of diabetes mellitus comes as a complete surprise; by this time, significant disturbances in the functioning of organs may be observed in the body.

Diabetes mellitus must be constantly maintained and regularly undergo blood tests for glucose concentration or use a home glucometer. In the absence of constant treatment, patients' vision deteriorates; in advanced cases, the process of retinal detachment can provoke complete blindness. High blood sugar levels are one of the main causes of heart attacks and strokes, kidney failure, and gangrene of the extremities. Constant monitoring of glucose concentration is the main measure in the treatment of the disease.

If symptoms are detected, you should not resort to self-medication; self-therapy without making an accurate diagnosis, knowledge of individual factors, and the presence of concomitant diseases can significantly worsen the patient’s general condition. Treatment of diabetes mellitus is carried out strictly under the supervision of a doctor.

Measures to lower glucose

Now you know what the normal blood sugar level is for an adult. In a healthy patient, this value varies from 3.6 to 5.5 mmol/liter; prediabetes is considered an indicator with a value from 6.1 to 6.9 mmol/liter. However, elevated blood sugar levels do not mean that the patient will necessarily have diabetes, but this is a reason to consume high-quality and healthy foods and become addicted to sports.

What to do to lower your blood sugar levels:

• control optimal weight, if you have extra pounds, lose weight, but not with the help of exhausting diets, but with the help of physical activity and good nutrition - no fats and fast carbohydrates;
• balance the diet, fill the menu with fresh vegetables and fruits, except potatoes, bananas and grapes, high-fiber products, exclude fatty and fried foods, bakery and confectionery products, alcohol, coffee;
• observe activity and rest regimes, 8 hours a day is the minimum duration of sleep, it is recommended to go to bed and get up at the same time;
• do physical exercise every day, find a favorite sport if there is no time for full-fledged sports, allocate at least thirty minutes a day for morning exercises, it is very useful to walk in the fresh air;
• to refuse from bad habits.

Important! You can’t starve, go on exhausting diets, or mono-diets. Such a diet will provoke even greater metabolic disorders and become an additional risk factor for the formation of an incurable disease with many complications.

How to measure your sugar level

Patients with high blood sugar levels, and especially those with diabetes, need to measure their glucose concentration every day, preferably on an empty stomach and after meals. However, this does not mean that patients need to go to the hospital every day for testing. Tests can be done at home using a special device - a glucometer. A glucometer is an individual small device for measuring blood sugar levels; test strips are attached to the device.

To measure the test strip, apply a small amount of blood from your finger, then place the strip inside the device. Within 5-30 seconds, the glucometer will determine the indicator and display the analysis result on the screen.

It is best to take blood from a finger, after making a puncture with a special lancet. During the procedure, the puncture site must be wiped with medical alcohol to avoid infection.

Which glucometer should you choose? There are a large number of models of such devices, the models differ in size and shape. To choose the most suitable device for measuring blood sugar levels, first consult with your doctor and clarify the advantages of a particular model over others.

Although home tests are not suitable for guiding treatment and will not be valid if you are considering surgery, they play an important role in monitoring your health on a daily basis. In this case, the patient will know exactly when to take the necessary measures to lower blood sugar levels, and when, on the contrary, to drink sweet tea if the sugar has dropped sharply.

Who needs to control sugar levels

An analysis of glucose concentration should primarily be carried out on patients who suffer from diabetes. The analysis is no less important for people who are in a state of prediabetes; with proper treatment and prevention, the transition of prediabetes to diabetes can be avoided.

People whose close relatives have diabetes should undergo an annual examination. It is also recommended for people suffering from obesity to get tested every year. Other patients over 40 years of age should have a blood glucose test once every 3 years.

How often should pregnant patients be tested? The frequency of testing for blood glucose concentrations for pregnant women is prescribed by the attending physician. It is best if a woman expecting the birth of a child undergoes a sugar test once a month, as well as other blood tests with an additional glucose test.

Low blood sugar is characterized by a condition called hypoglycemia. This is a rather dangerous state of the body when glucose is much less than normal and the body needs help. It is worth noting that not only low sugar content is dangerous to health, but also high sugar content. When glucose is low, the body does not receive enough nutrition and the brain suffers first. When the required amount of glucose does not enter the brain, it gradually begins to die. Accordingly, symptoms of malaise and weakness arise.

Causes of low blood sugar

There are reasons for both increases and decreases in blood sugar. Most often this happens due to an unbalanced diet. Those people who know their problems with low glucose always carry candy or chocolate with them. This is a kind of help without the use of various medications. There are several main reasons when sugar drops without any particular reason. This:

• limited and unbalanced diet. This may be a strict diet, when the necessary supply of carbohydrates, which are the main source of energy, runs out;
• too long breaks between meals. For example, when abstaining without food for 8 hours, blood sugar becomes very low, and the body requires renewed energy and the entire necessary amount of carbohydrates for energy;
• constant intense physical activity. This can also happen with regular and proper nutrition, since more energy is consumed than consumed;
• an excess of sweets, since all sweet foods can sharply increase blood glucose, and then there is a sharp drop. Thus, the body also suffers, which can be said about alcoholic drinks.

Low blood sugar - symptoms

The origin of hypoglycemia can be as varied as its symptoms. Most often, low blood sugar is observed in the morning, which is characterized by weakness, drowsiness and possible irritability. If you measure your sugar level, it will most likely be no more than 3.3 mmol/l. In this case, it is enough for a person to eat or drink sweet tea. Then all the symptoms will begin to disappear little by little.

There are also cases of response hypoglycemia, when sugar drops immediately after eating. Such symptoms may indicate the development of diabetes mellitus. There are some symptoms that can accurately characterize the future development of diabetes. This:

• weakness, severe fatigue and irritability;
• increased sweating;
• chills, hot flashes and hand tremors;
• muscle weakness and numbness in the legs;
• strong feeling of hunger and nausea;
• visual impairment in the most advanced cases.

For comparison, take a look at the symptoms that occur when glucose is higher than normal:

How does low sugar affect the brain?

Since the body suffers completely from a lack of sugar, the brain also experiences its own complications. The patient's condition may deteriorate significantly when the level drops to 3 mmol/l. The patient may experience convulsions, slurred speech, unsteady gait and absent-minded attention. Such conditions usually appear after brain cells begin to die.

If you do not provide assistance to the patient in time, a convulsive attack or loss of consciousness may occur. Low blood sugar may indicate that the body is in a state of malaise. In this case, it is important to prevent a diabetic coma, because it is extremely dangerous.

Treatment for low blood sugar

If you already have the first symptoms of low sugar, you need to take immediate action. It is better not to increase low sugar levels on your own, since using inappropriate medications can only cause harm. For this, it is especially important to calculate the correct dose to raise blood glucose. It should be borne in mind that it is necessary to follow a precise diet, a minimum of physical activity and take medications on your own. Such unfounded methods of treatment can make the blood sugar even lower, because it is not known exactly how this or that drug will affect the body.

During the diet, low sugar levels must be raised with the following products:

• various seafood;
• vegetables - tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini and many others;
• all fermented milk products, especially kefir and fermented baked milk.

If you follow the simplest rules of the diet, the treatment will be more than successful and you can achieve good results in a short time. Low blood sugar levels will no longer have a detrimental effect on your body, and most importantly, its levels can always be kept under control. All symptoms will gradually disappear as blood counts return to normal. It is very important to eat right and eat all those necessary foods that are especially important for your body. In such cases, even if sugar decreases, its indicators will not reach a critical level.

Is it possible to lose weight due to low blood sugar?

Many people think that diabetes, expressed in increased glucose, causes excess weight. Despite this, a lack of sugar can also have a detrimental effect on a person’s weight. But it is worth noting that everything increasingly depends on the individual characteristics of each organism.

Although Dr. Sali Harris, an American physician and researcher, discovered the phenomenon of low blood sugar as early as 1924, the topic hardly gained any traction among the medical community and patients.

So much so that low blood sugar was not even taught in medical schools. In terms of patient management practices, symptoms typically resulting from low blood sugar were indicators of other illnesses.

Global statistical studies indicate a strong increase in the number of cases of problems due to low blood sugar. And these data are alarming. You need to understand the causes of the problems; emerging symptoms cannot be overlooked or ignored.

Low sugar or hypoglycemia

Our body produces glucose. Glucose is a form of sugar that is produced in the body after eating. It is formed by carbohydrates, proteins and fats, after which it enters the blood. That is, the blood absorbs glucose and creates energy for movement and chemical reactions in the body. Muscles, organs and cells feed on this energy.

For the brain, glucose is the only source of nutrition. For normal functioning, brain neurons need a constant supply of at least 125-150 grams of glucose per day.

Everything is fine as long as your blood sugar remains at normal levels. Too high or too low a level leads to a deviation from the normal functioning of the body. Everyone's level is different depending on their life circumstances. In general, blood sugar levels between 50 and 60 mg/dL indicate mild hypoglycemia, while levels between 20 and 50 mg/dL indicate moderate hypoglycemia. If your sugar level drops below 20 mg/dL, then it’s time to sound the alarm.

Immediately after the level drops, a person feels a lack of energy. The human body begins to signal a problem in advance, the corresponding symptoms appear, so there are ways to increase sugar levels.

Symptoms of Low Sugar

It is very easy to identify the causes and symptoms of low blood sugar. The person feels it.

Low blood sugar is not a disease, but a health condition. This can happen to anyone. For diabetics, this can lead to serious complications. Almost all alcoholics have low sugar. Nervous and mental disorders can also be a consequence of low blood sugar.

Symptoms may appear throughout the day. Very often, the person suffering from them may not even be aware of the disorder. For example, feeling tired or exhausted between 11 am and 3 pm is the first sign of low blood sugar. It's easier to identify symptoms if you know what to look for. The easiest way is to track your body's reactions after eating a sweet donut or coffee. A person may have one or more symptoms. This is just the body's reaction to low sugar levels.

The first symptoms: weakness, feeling tired, trembling, sweating, headache, hunger, drowsiness, irritation, anger, confusion in thoughts, blurred vision, double vision, feeling of awkwardness, rapid heartbeat.

Further, in the absence of appropriate measures to raise glucose levels, the symptoms intensify and can result in any of the following. In extreme situations, lack of help can lead to brain damage or death.

Drowsiness, confusion, behavior changes, seizure and coma.

Symptoms of low sugar or hypoglycemia may also occur during sleep. Signs of low sugar during sleep include:

• screaming or talking in your sleep,
• increased sweating, so that the sheets become wet,
• feeling tired or irritated after sleep.

Causes of low sugar in the absence of diabetes

Adults and children who do not have diabetes may also experience symptoms of low sugar. In this case, there are two types of disorders: fasting hypoglycemia and reactive hypoglycemia.

Fasting hypoglycemia can occur when a person does not eat for eight hours or longer. Reasons: prolonged fasting; malnutrition; not a healthy diet; taking medications that impair the function of the liver or pancreas; consuming large amounts of beer, wine or liquor, especially on an empty stomach; some types of tumors on internal organs that produce insulin, such as the liver or pancreas; abnormal functioning of certain hormones that increase the body's production of insulin (hyperinsulinism) and, as a result, depletion of glucose reserves occurs, this can lead to a sharp drop in blood sugar; disorders leading to increased consumption of glucose by the body; liver diseases; a sharp reaction of the body to insulin, leading to an increase in sugar levels.

Responsive hypoglycemia: Occurs approximately two to four hours after eating. The causes of low blood sugar response or hypoglycemia are not fully understood. They can be the following: surgical operations on the stomach; early diabetes mellitus; diseases leading to increased glucose consumption; ideopathic disease.

Causes of Low Sugar for Diabetics

Low blood sugar and hypoglycemia are closely associated with diabetes. There are cases where people who have been suffering from diabetes for many years do not find any symptoms. Symptoms may be attributed to dehydration, anemia and thyroid disorder. In such cases, family members and friends should be informed. If left untreated, the situation will worsen and the consequences can be serious.

Type 1 diabetics are more likely to have low blood sugar levels than type 2 diabetics. People with diabetes experience “insulin shock.”

This occurs when the body has too much insulin and not enough glucose. A large amount of insulin depletes reserve reserves of glucose, the body receives a lot of energy. Other causes may be due to a reaction to medications or a delay in eating, not eating enough, strenuous exercise, alcohol, or several of the above factors.

Other causes of low sugar

There are some other conditions that can cause low sugar: early pregnancy, prolonged fasting, a poor diet, constant long-term strength exercise, alcohol consumption, taking beta blockers during intense training, and a reaction to aspirin in children.

Recognize low sugar levels in time and begin treatment

Knowing the symptoms of low blood sugar allows you to recognize the problem early. It is best to consult a therapist and get all the necessary tests. You can also use home remedies to test your glucose levels. There are even talking devices for people with poor vision. This is a quantitative test that helps you find out the amount of glucose in a blood sample. Results will be received in a few minutes.

Diabetics constantly need to monitor their sugar levels. The test results should be shown to a physician, who will help determine, if necessary, the dose of medications, changes in diet or exercise, and help avoid complications.

Treating a Sugar Disorder

The first thing a non-diabetic person needs to do is eat a tablespoon of sugar, honey or syrup, which will relieve symptoms for 10-15 minutes. Fruit juice, non-diet soda, or a glass of milk will also help normalize your blood sugar levels. There is no need to eat much while symptoms are occurring and it is best to wait 15 minutes before eating again.

This is the only temporary treatment that helps relieve symptoms for 15 minutes. Use a sugar meter. If the symptoms are relieved, and the next meal is due in 30 minutes or less, then you should eat on a schedule. If the next meal is not soon, then it is worth having a snack; a more substantial meal will reduce the risk of recurrence of symptoms. As a last resort, be prepared to call an ambulance if necessary. If several symptoms occur at once, hospitalization is required. In this case, an injection or hormonal drugs will help avoid complications.

Diabetics who are constantly susceptible to low blood sugar levels can wear a bracelet or jewelry with medical information. Those who take medications that can cause a decrease in sugar should carry glucose tablets, candies or sweets with them.

Prevent low blood sugar levels

Precautionary measures will help prevent an attack. People who are susceptible to low blood sugar can carry a notepad and write down the steps they take, noting which steps helped.

Diabetics should follow the doctor's instructions. For non-diabetics, eating small meals frequently is a good temporary strategy to avoid low blood sugar. Talk to your doctor to determine the causes and take steps to prevent low blood sugar levels.

Tips to prevent low sugar:

• Know your body and follow your doctor's instructions.
• Never skip a meal. Eat regularly.
• Eat light snacks before meals.
• Check your sugar levels and stay within reach of honey. Institutions. Talk to your doctor about dietary changes and other changes if needed.
• Eat before drinking alcohol.
• The diet should be complete. Include Proteins, fats and carbohydrates. Fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Reduce saturated fat and cholesterol.
• Maintain a healthy weight. Learn to cope with attacks. Remember to bring snacks, such as crackers with peanut butter or cheese, or other foods that help regulate your blood sugar.

The body's need for sugar can be compared to a car's need for gasoline: if there is not enough of it, the car will not go far. By analogy with this example, glucose also provides the body's cells with energy, without which they simply cannot grow and develop. Therefore, if tests show low blood sugar, the reason must be found out. If this is not done, the cells will begin to starve and die, which will lead to the development of pathological processes in the body and can cause death.

Hypoglycemia is a condition in the body when the amount of glucose in the blood is below the permissible limit. This situation is no less dangerous than high sugar levels, since the cells do not receive energy and they starve. The brain is the first to feel a lack of glucose, and it takes about twenty percent of the sugar entering the body to feed it.

Poor supply of glucose to the brain leads to the fact that neurons begin to die and the brain gradually fails. This occurs against the background of energy starvation of other tissues and organs, which is why pathological processes develop in them. If the problem is ignored and measures are not taken to stabilize sugar, a person may fall into a diabetic coma.

Although many people believe that low blood glucose levels are caused by diabetes, this is not entirely true, since diabetes is only one of the causes. A diabetic's blood sugar is unstable and can fluctuate from dangerously high to critically low levels if left unchecked. Diabetics are aware of this danger, so they always have a piece of sugar or candy on hand, which can raise blood sugar in critical situations.

But there are times when the glucose level in a healthy person drops to a critical minimum. One of the reasons why there is a decrease in sugar is a strict diet, in which glucose enters the body with carbohydrates in small quantities. As a result, the body's internal reserves are depleted (glucose is stored in the liver in the form of glycogen, as well as in adipose tissue), after which it has nothing to extract energy from.

The cause of low sugar is a long interval between meals. After food enters the body, it is broken down, after which carbohydrates are extracted from it, then glucose. After it enters the blood, insulin carries it throughout the body, delivering it to every cell of the body.

If the time between meals is more than eight hours, there is a high probability that sugar will be below normal. Therefore, glucose is often below normal levels in the morning due to the fact that a person does not eat at night and carbohydrates do not enter the body.

Increased amounts of sweet, fatty, smoked foods, alcohol, sweet soda and other products that are characterized by a high glycemic index have the ability to quickly break down into glucose, causing blood sugar levels to rise quickly. But this also means that after a rapid increase, the amount of glucose also quickly decreases and falls below normal. Therefore, doctors recommend eating foods with a low or medium glycemic index. Such foods take longer to digest, causing blood glucose levels to rise and fall gradually, reducing the load on the pancreas, which synthesizes insulin.

One of the reasons why sugar levels are below normal is physical activity: at this time, muscles need energy, and it is consumed in large quantities. It is interesting that the body is designed in such a way that active exercise can also cause an increase in glucose due to the fact that during sports, glucose is actively extracted from glycogen and fat reserves.

Symptoms of Low Glucose

A decrease in sugar can make itself felt with various symptoms. If it is observed only in the morning, glucose deficiency can be recognized by weakness, drowsiness, and irritability. According to experts, if at this moment you measure the blood glucose level with a glucometer, the results will be below normal, which should be from 3.3 to 5.5 mol/l. If a person is healthy, for his sugar level to return to normal, it will be enough for him to have breakfast.

Sometimes sugar is below normal after eating, which can signal developing diabetes. Symptoms of the disease develop slowly, so the patient has time to pay attention to signs of low sugar and consult a doctor.

First of all, this:

• weakness, fatigue, nervousness;
• trembling hands, chills or hot flashes;
• increased sweating;
• muscle weakness, heaviness in the legs, numbness of the limbs;
• darkening in the eyes, spots, white veils before the eyes;
• nausea;
• feeling of extreme hunger.

Most of the reactions caused by low sugar are dictated by the brain, which suffers from a lack of energy because its own reserves last only twenty minutes, while other tissues last longer due to the ability to extract sugar from fat tissue. In this case, experts advise measuring it if you have a glucometer, and if your sugar is below normal, quickly eat a product with a high glycemic index (for example, candy).

If you don’t have a glucometer and unpleasant symptoms develop, you need to see a doctor and have your blood tested for sugar. If you ignore the signs of sugar below normal, the person’s condition will worsen: convulsions will appear, attention will become distracted, speech will become incoherent, and gait will become unsteady. After some time, the person will lose consciousness and be seized by convulsions reminiscent of an epileptic attack. A stroke can also occur, which causes serious brain damage and can be fatal.

The same can happen to diabetics, if for some reason they were unable to stabilize their sugar or did not pay attention to its decrease in time. In this case, a person may fall into a diabetic coma and then die. Therefore, it is very important for people who are near him not to panic and to immediately call an ambulance.

How to reduce glucose?

If the decrease in sugar is not associated with diabetes, in order to normalize it, you must adhere to a special diet and eat right. When developing a diet, you need to focus on the table with the glycemic index, which is easy to find on the Internet. In this list you can find information about a wide variety of products.

A low glycemic index is typical for vegetables and fruits, but it should be borne in mind that after cooking it increases, so it is advisable to consume these products fresh. Seafood, fermented milk products, and vegetable fats are also useful. But you need to give up butter and animal fat, as well as fried, fatty foods.

Food should be taken at short intervals, which ensures that food will be supplied regularly, which will reduce the possibility of developing hypoglycemia. This should be especially taken into account by women who adhere to diets and play sports in order to lose weight. In this case, experts definitely recommend consulting with a doctor and developing a menu in such a way that the amount of food that enters the body is correctly correlated with the energy that is expended during training.

You should be very careful when drinking alcoholic beverages. They should especially not be taken on an empty stomach, as this can cause hypoglycemia. People with diabetes should listen carefully to their doctor and follow the instructions exactly. If a person plans to play sports, the doctor must carefully select not only the medicine, but also the dose, and this applies both to people who live on injections and to those who take glucose-lowering medications.