Stop Worrying Over Low Blood Sugar

Have you treated diabetes for so long now that your medications have reduced your blood sugar level beyond ordinary?  Are you scared that you might die soon because the sugar level in your blood is screaming for attention? Do you also know that over-stressing yourself could reduce your blood sugar, and kill you without any signs and even faster than diabetes? Are you risking your health because you are trying to prevent diabetes? Yes, avoiding sugary things will keep you away from diabetes, but not taking sweet stuff at all will usher you into the dangers of low blood sugar.

Low blood sugar, also known in medical terms as ‘hypoglycemia,’ is the direct opposite of diabetes. This is a condition whereby the sugar level in the blood is dangerously low. This condition is familiar to people who are treating diabetes because, in a bid to reduce their high blood sugar level, their medication reduces the level beyond normal, thereby resulting in hypoglycemia. Other factors that will be discussed in other parts of the essay can also cause diabetes.

Why should you read this article to the end?

Reading it to the end will teach you when to and when not to eat sugary foods. It will also explain why you should not totally ignore sugar and glucose-giving foods. It will also give you insights into the causes of hypoglycemia, the symptoms, and how you can avoid it. Above all, if, unfortunately, you have started seeing signs and symptoms of hypoglycemia, which is very rare, this article will provide for you ways in which you can treat it in the comfort of your house, naturally and without complications.

Before we delve into the other parts of this article, let me share this brief story with you.

Miss A followed her friend, Mrs. B, to the hospital for antenatal. Upon getting to the hospital, Mrs. B went in to see the doctor, while Miss A, waited for her in the reception. However, Miss A had already died to Mrs. B’s shock while waiting for her on the reception chair! The question now is, what killed Miss A?

An autopsy carried out on the body revealed that Miss A had been stressing herself out at work and at home. Apparently, this excess stress led to the dangerous drop in her blood sugar levels, thereby killing her without any signs! Remember, Miss A was feeling hale and hearty before going out with her friend.

Causes of Low Blood Sugar

• Insulin

Excessive insulin use would force the body to convert all glucose into glycogen, thereby leaving the body with little or no glucose for the body to work with. Other medications that are combined with insulin also lower blood sugar levels.

• Poor Eating Habit

A poor diet, such as an improperly balanced diet, skipping meals, and eating little, would deprive the body of enough glucose in proper meals that the body needs to function correctly.

• Excess Physical Activities (Exercise)

While it is terrific and essential to engage in physical activities like exercises, overdoing it can cause harm to your body. While exercising, your muscles use glucose to repair themselves, and when the glucose is used up without replacement, your blood sugar drops. Hence the reason for the provision of glucose during sports.

• Excess Stress

According to medical records, ‘excess stress can elevate cortisol levels, which interferes with how insulin is used.’

• Excessive Consumption of Alcohol

Eating less and drinking heavily could prevent your liver from releasing stored glucose into your blood, thereby causing hypoglycemia.

• When you stop eating every form of glucose in a bid to prevent diabetes, on the flip side, placing too much restriction on sugar intake could lead to hypoglycemia as well, you would be inviting hypoglycemia.

People with the following health issues can suffer from hypoglycemia:

• Liver disease
• Pancreatic tumor
• Adrenal insufficiency

Symptoms

What signals would your body give you when your blood sugar is getting lower than average?

• Pale skin
• Excessive sweating
• Dizziness
• Irregular heartbeats
• Anxiety
• Extreme hunger
• Fatigue
• Difficulty in sleeping
• Weakness
• Numbness
• Headache

These signs are hardly noticeable and seem insignificant. However, they are big flags that signify low blood sugar.

Severe signs of hypoglycemia, when it becomes severe and needs quick medical attention include;

• Seizures
• Loss of consciousness
• Blurry vision
• Confusion and
• Sometimes death

Natural Remedies for Low Blood Sugar

The remedy for hypoglycemia is majorly attached to changes in lifestyle and feeding habits. When these are monitored, the treatment process and the achievement of desired results become easier.

The following are the treatments for low blood sugar;

• Take glucose at all times.
• You can add glucose gel if you so wish.
• Stock your house with hard candies and eat them always until you your blood sugar picks again
• Take soft drinks that are not sugar-free.
• Try soda. Research holds that it can help shoot up your blood sugar level.
• Eat foods that are rich in carbohydrates, protein, and fat. The primary food groups that are very effective for low blood sugar include; grains, seeds, and nuts, dairy products, potatoes, etc.ch as you can.
• Take honey in large amounts.
• Eat vegetables and fruits that are filled with vitamins. Try citrus and apples.
• Stop alcohol as much as possible.
• Stop taking beverages or drinks that contain caffeine.
• Stop skipping meals. Eat well at the appropriate time and in reasonable amounts.
• To treat hypoglycemia, you need to stop every form of physical exercise. When your blood sugar returns to normal, you can resume your exercise routine.
• If you are diabetic, stay away from insulin for the meantime.
• Avoid herbs like neem, it reduces blood sugar.

For immediate results, do the following;

• One tube of glucose gel of four glucose tablets
• One cup of fruit juice, apple or orange juice
• One cup of soda (not sugar or calorie-free)
• Two teaspoons of honey, sugar or corn syrup
• Carbohydrate-rich foods.

After doing any of these, try taking a blood sugar test to know how far your home treatment has gone in shooting up your blood sugar level.  Also, note that taking these remedies excessively could be dangerous. Therefore there should be a balance, and moderation should be at its peak, do not take too much sugar, and do not take an amount so insignificant to do anything to your blood sugar level.

Prevention

How then do you prevent yourself from falling into this danger?

• Eat all your meals. Do not skip any one of your meals. Plan your meal 5 hours apart.
• Check the dosage of your diabetes medication before using it.
• Eat a balanced diet, always. Strike a balance among all the food nutrients.
• Exercise your body mildly 30 minutes to 1 hour after meals.
• Try to avoid taking hot baths immediately after an insulin shot if you are diabetic.
• Continue with your exercises and physical activities, but do not take it to the extreme and try to replace lost glucose by licking glucose gel, chewing gums, sweets, and candies.
• Always visit the doctor to take a blood sugar test. Do not try doing this yourself by tasting your urine to determine.
• Just the same way asthmatic patients carry their inhalers everywhere they go, take something containing sugar with you wherever you go, and eat them immediately you notice any symptoms.
• Do not wait for the symptoms to get worse before you act.

Hypoglycemia has proven to be more fatal than its counterpart; diabetes. It breaks you down and shuts down your body without notifications. Monitoring your blood sugar level is an excellent way to start caring for your health and general wellbeing. Keeping a close eye on your sugar level helps you detect any problems that might arise. It enables you to balance your sugar intake by preventing you from taking excess sugar, which can cause diabetes and taking extremely less sugar, which can cause hypoglycemia.

The symptoms might be sporadic and insignificant but should not be ignored. The symptoms include headache, dizziness, and fatigue, among others. Treatment and prevention of hypoglycemia help secure your general wellbeing. Treatment and prevention at home are quite easy as they involve few lifestyle adjustments, feeding routine changes, and little or no medications. However, it is wise to reach out for medical help when hypoglycemia becomes complicated. It is advisable not to wait until the symptoms get worse. Stick and adhere to every prevention and treatment process and continue to enjoy your sound health.