Low Blood Sugar

[RichyW]

Hi,

I've always suspected that I have a problem with low blood sugar. Throughout adulthood (and I'm 40 now) I've had episodes when I just feel completely drained: I can feel that my heart is pounding harder than usual, I'm light-headed, I get a tingling sensation in my head and hands, I'm shaky, and I crave food in general and sugary snacks in particular, even though I may have eaten quite recently. I get one or two of these episodes a week and find them quite hard to shake off. Normally it will take a couple of hours before I feel normal again.

I'm currently very overweight, but I was slim until the age of 30 and I had these episodes then, too. I also drink most days (although I rarely get drunk), but again, when I was younger and only drank on Saturday nights, I'd still get these episodes on other days.

Yesterday I could barely drag myself off the sofa, so I finally went and bought a blood sugar monitor. I scored 3.6 about an hour after eating dinner, which this website says is hypoglycemic. First thing this morning I was up to 5.2 and feeling fine, but by lunchtime I was down to 3.2, and back into hypoglycemic territory.

Some questions:

1) Does this sound like diabetes?
2) What is the relationship between hypoglycemia and diabetes?
3) What are the causes of hypoglycemia?
4) Can I control this with my diet?
5) Is my GP likely to prescribe me the fiendishly expensive test strips for the monitor?
6) Am I correct in thinking that, when my glucose levels drop below 4.0, I should take 10-20 g of dextrose tablets to treat these episodes?

Any advice gratefully received. I will of course be seeing my GP when I can, but would welcome some amateur wisdom in the meantime.

 

[AMBrennan]

1) Does this sound like diabetes?

Well, Diabetes is diagnosed if you have high blood sugar (fasting > 7mmol/l, random > 11.1mmol/l, HbA1c > 6.5%).

2) What is the relationship between hypoglycemia and diabetes?

Diabetes is characterised by high blood sugar, and as such hypoglycemic drugs are given. Some of them - insulin secretagogues and injected insulin - can cause hypoglycemia.

3) What are the causes of hypoglycemia?

Too much hypoglycemic medication, too much alcohol and a variety of medical conditions beyond my expertise. Go see a doctor.

5) Is my GP likely to prescribe me the fiendishly expensive test strips for the monitor?

That seems unlikely - the main reason people spend a lot on test strips is because GPs, based on NICE recommendation and research, don't prescribe test strips but people think they should test anyway.

6) Am I correct in thinking that, when my glucose levels drop below 4.0, I should take 10-20 g of dextrose tablets to treat these episodes?

These recommendations are for diabetics who suffer hypos as a result of too much hypoglycemic medication. It seems unlikely that other causes of hypoglycemia (e.g. reactive hypoglycemia) can be treated identically. Go see a doctor.

 

[hanadr]

Richy
there is a condition called "Reactive Hypoglycaemia" which may be related to diabetes, but your sugar readings are nowhere near low enough to diagnose that. In fact non-diabetics often have blood sugars in the 3s. Average non-diabetic level is about 4.7
Diabetes is a condition of HIGH blood glucose levels. the hypos that diabetics often suffer from are caused by the treatment and not the condition.
I'm a genetic T2 diabetic relying mainly on diet for my blood glucose control. I get readings in the 3s and suffer no ill effects from it.
the mantra "4's the floor" is often misapplied. It actually refers to insulin treated diabetics, whose sugars may still be falling. a reading of below 2 may be dangerous and people whose systems are used to high sugar levels are likely to feel ill at quite high levels.
If you feel ill, I'd suggest you see a doctor rather than try to diagnose yourself. Your symptoms could be many things including blood pressure or alcohol.
See your GP. Anyway it doesn't sound terribly serious or diabetic But then I'm not a doctor either.
Hana