What Are The Complications Of Low Blood Glucose
Mild-to-moderate low blood glucose can be easily treated. But severely low blood glucose can cause serious complications, including passing out, coma, or death.
Repeated episodes of low blood glucose can lead to
- high blood glucose levels, if worry or fear of low blood glucose keeps you from taking the medicines you need to manage your diabetes8
- hypoglycemia unawareness, a condition in which you dont notice any symptoms of low blood glucose until your blood glucose level has dropped very low
What Level Of Blood Sugar Is Dangerous & How To Bring It Down Quickly
High blood sugar is a condition which occurs if the transport of the sugar from the blood to the cells is affected. And this condition if left unchecked can lead to a dangerous rise in the sugar level, which can further invite many other problems and complications. So what level of blood sugar is dangerous and how to bring it down quickly? It is important to know about this and the ways to deal with it.
Get More Quality Shuteye
Melissa Ross/Stocksy
Poor or limited sleep affects body chemistry, and getting more slumber helps with blood sugar control, Weisenberger says. Chronic lack of sleep may contribute to the risk of type 2 diabetes, according to a small study published in Diabetologia in February 2015. Healthy volunteers who slept only four hours for three nights in a row had higher levels of fatty acids in their blood, which reduced insulins ability to regulate blood sugar by about 23 percent, the researchers found. Lack of sleep is also linked with other health conditions, including obesity, heart disease, and stroke, according to the Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School.
The National Sleep Foundation recommends aiming for seven to nine hours of uninterrupted sleep per night.
Having sleep troubles? Follow these recommendations from the National Sleep Foundation:
- Sleep in a cool, dark room.
- Avoid consuming alcohol or caffeine in the hours before bed.
- Go to bed and wake up at the same time each day, even on the weekends.
- Dont look at screens for at least a half hour before bedtime, including TV, tablets, cell phones, and computers.
You May Like: How To Measure Your Blood Sugar
Preventing High Blood Sugars
Everyone with diabetes experiences high blood sugars sometimes there are simply too many variables in the human body out of your control to prevent them altogether.
That being said, there are a few guidelines we can all follow to minimize the frequency of high blood sugars:
- Avoid full-sugar beverages including soda, juice, coffee drinks, iced tea, etc.
- Choose your carbohydrates carefully starchy carbs from pasta, candy, bread, desserts, etc. will spike your blood sugar the most
- Take your medications as prescribed and contact your healthcare team if you miss a dose to determine if you can take it late
- Exercise daily even a 20-minute walk makes a big difference on a daily basis
- Drink plenty of water to prevent dehydration
And of course, if youre experiencing high blood sugars are a daily basis and youre unsure of the cause, talk to your healthcare team about making adjustments in your diabetes management regimen. A slight increase in your medications can have a big impact!
Suggested next posts:
Just How To Lower Blood Sugar Level Levels With Diet
Reducing blood sugar levels with dietary changes can be done by sticking to a low glycemic diet plan. Reducing blood glucose degrees can be done by consuming foods that do not make the body create high amounts of glucose when absorbed. Reducing blood glucose likewise requires physical adjustments, such as losing weight or enhancing exercise.
It is necessary to remember that in order to reduced blood glucose degrees, it needs to be carried out in combination with a medical professionals guidance. Reducing blood sugar level degrees should just be done when the body is healthy and balanced sufficient to tackle such a task, and also it can have adverse results if done improperly.
Also Check: When Should I Check My Sugar
Treating Low Blood Glucose If You Take Medicines That Slow Down Digestion
Some diabetes medicines slow down the digestion of carbohydrates to keep blood glucose levels from rising too high after you eat. If you develop low blood glucose while taking these medicines, you will need to take glucose tablets or glucose gel right away. Eating or drinking other sources of carbohydrates wont raise your blood glucose level quickly enough.
How To Prevent Hyperglycaemia
There are simple ways to reduce your risk of severe or prolonged hyperglycaemia:
- Be careful what you eat be particularly aware of how snacking and eating sugary foods or carbohydrates can affect your blood sugar level.
- Stick to your treatment plan remember to take your insulin or other diabetes medications as recommended by your care team.
- Be as active as possible getting regular exercise can help stop your blood sugar level rising, but you should check with your doctor first if you’re taking diabetes medication, as some medicines can lead to hypoglycaemia if you exercise too much.
- Take extra care when you’re ill your care team can provide you with some “sick day rules” that outline what you can do to keep your blood sugar level under control during an illness.
- Monitor your blood sugar level your care team may suggest using a device to check your level at home so you can spot an increase early and take steps to stop it.
Page last reviewed: 08 August 2018 Next review due: 08 August 2021
You May Like: Can Stress Lower Blood Sugar
Have A Protein/ Fat Combined Snack
Many people find that a bedtime snack helps lower morning highs.
This is most likely because it shortens the fasting time and may slow down the livers own glucose production. If youre not using the apple cider vinegar method above, try having a mix of protein and fat combined before going to bed.
Here are a few ideas:
- A tablespoon of natural peanut butter
- A small piece of chicken with avocado or 5 olives
- A small handful of macadamia nuts
- A couple of slices of cheese
These are all simple snacks that contain both protein and fat.
How Long Does It Take To Reverse Diabetes
When Jeff first came to the Pritikin Longevity Center several years ago, he was a type 2 diabetic.
But by his third day of eating and exercising Pritikin-style, his blood sugar had plummeted to normal, non-diabetic levels. By the third day it happened that quickly! recalls the Pritikin guest.
There is much we can do with a healthy lifestyle alone, no medications needed, to prevent diabetes. How long does it take to control diabetes with food and fitness? Find out below.
And by the third day, I got this burst of energy, says Jeff. I felt as good as I did when I was in high school. And all this without taking any medications just eating healthy and exercising. Thats all it was!
Not everyones blood sugar tumbles as quickly as Jeffs, but there is plenty of research affirming that a healthy diet like the Pritikin Eating Plan combined with daily exercise can profoundly reduce blood sugar levels in just two to three weeks time.
Guests at the Pritikin Center learn about the best foods for reversing diabetes at a Diabetic Luncheon with Kimberly Gomer, Director of Nutrition.
You May Like: Can Too Much Sugar Cause Afib
What Foods Will Help Regulate My Blood Sugar
Diabetes or diabetes mellitus is a long-term health condition that is characterized by high blood glucose levels. The disease affects the ability of the body to convert food into energy inside the body. The food you eat is converted to simpler forms, most commonly glucose, inside the body. When the glucose in the blood increases, the body releases a hormone called insulin in the blood. Insulin brings high blood glucose levels back to normal levels. In diabetes, either there is a deficiency of insulin or the body is unable to respond to insulin . In either of the cases, there is an increased concentration of glucose in the blood known as hyperglycemia.
If you have diabetes, you must check your blood sugar levels regularly to make sure the levels are not too low or too high . Depending on your age and any other health conditions, your doctor may advise you to keep your blood sugar level in a range that they consider will be safe and healthy for you. Whenever your blood sugar level is over 240 mg/dL, you must check the presence of ketones in the urine by using an over the counter ketone test kit. High levels of ketones can be a sign of a serious medical emergency called diabetic ketoacidosis. Seek urgent medical help if your urine shows the presence of ketones or you have any signs of ketoacidosis, such as fast breathing, nausea and vomiting, stomachache, headache, or fruity smell from the mouth.
What Gets Blood Sugar Down
Insulin is a protein-based hormone needed to allow glucose, or sugars, to be taken up by the body’s cell tissues and used as energy. Insulin gets released by the pancreas. Insulin production, along with diet, regulates how much glucose is in the bloodstream, for it is insulin that enables cells to take the glucose out of the blood and past their cell walls and inside the cells. Glucose is the first fuel that the body burns, and the brain lives on it.
If you are low in insulin production or cannot utilize insulin properly, the sugars mostly just stay in your bloodstream and build to very high levels. This leads to the symptoms of diabetes: excess weight or obesity dehydration eventual harm to your body lack of energy and lack of mental powers chronic skin infections gum disease/tooth decay foot infections and blurry vision.
One way of managing type 2 diabetesand minimizing these complications is taking commercially prepared insulin to force more insulin into your bloodstream. Various types of medicationare also available, such as the commonly-used Metformin or Glucophage.While it’s not uncommon for type 2 diabetics to use medication or insulin, it is only one part of a treatmentregimen, and it’s sometimes not needed at all – some people are able to control diabeteswithout the need for medication.
You May Like: Does Wine Lower Blood Sugar
Speak To Your Physician
Make sure you speak to your physician and healthcare team about making dietary and lifestyle changes.
And, if you think your morning levels are way too high, or no matter what you do you cant get them down, talk to your physician or health practitioner to see if you might need to alter your medication.
When it comes to lowering morning blood sugar levels, it really is a combination of things that can help.
Start with the apple cider vinegar and cheese before bed and see how that goes. Then, try working on all the other things in this list.
Give it some time and no doubt you will begin to see some great improvements.
Have you tried something else that worked? Have some comments youd like to add? Leave them below and lets chat about it.
Avoid Alcohol The Night Before And Sugar In Anything The Next Morning
Like to enjoy a tipple the night before you go to bed? Its time to cut down or back on that completely. The alcohol dehydrates the body and will mean your blood glucose level will be more saturated. The smaller amounts of glucose will affect you in bigger ways.
But this doesnt help you on a morning, right? Well, look out for drinking anything sugary on a morning. This includes your glass of orange juice. You may even want to avoid plain water!
You want to drink something that is going to keep your sugar levels to a minimum and not spart the release of insulin. That means looking for something that packs plenty of protein. Remember that protein berry smoothie? Consider that as your morning drink/breakfast. You can follow it with a glass of water if youd like.
A green smoothie would be another excellent option. It packs you full of nutrients, and you can add in the protein to get that filling element.
If you really want water, add a slice or two of lemon. You get some sweetness but without the large amounts of sugar hitting your system causing a problem.
Keeping your morning drink routine perfect will also help you reduce the stress hormones. Coffee is a stimulant and will just make your stress levels even worse. Anything with caffeine will do the same and thats usually what youll add sugar to. Opt for lemon water for a refreshing drink and then a smoothie for a no-caffeine, nutrient packed breakfast.
Read Also: Can Sugar Make Your Joints Hurt
Food Fitness And Prevention Of Diabetes
Bottom Line: There is much we can do with a healthy lifestyle alone, no medications needed, to prevent diabetes, states Dr. James Barnard, Distinguished Professor Emeritus at UCLA and author of more than 200 studies on the relationship between lifestyle habits and chronic diseases like diabetes.
In fact, a healthy lifestyle has proven more effective than medication in staving off diabetes.
Lifestyle changes, like those taught at the Pritikin Center, are nearly twice as effective as medication in preventing pre-diabetes from turning into diabetes.
In a landmark study, the NIH-sponsored Diabetes Prevention Program2, scientists followed 3,234 men and women with pre-diabetes for three years.
One-third of them adopted lifestyle changes that were similar to the Pritikin Program: a daily eating plan of low-calorie-dense, high-fiber foods exercising for at least 30 minutes five days a week and a 7% weight loss.
Another third of these pre-diabetics took a drug metformin .
The remaining third, the control group, took a placebo.
The results? Those on the lifestyle-change plan reduced the progression to full-blown type 2 diabetes by 58% compared to the control group. The reduction was even greater 71% among those aged 60 years or older.
Treatment with the drug metformin reduced the progression to type 2 diabetes by just 31%.
Put simply, lifestyle changes were nearly twice as effective as medication in preventing pre-diabetes from turning into diabetes.
Other Steps For How To Reduce Blood Sugar Level Immediately
While insulin is what will mainly help, there are other methods that can be used in both severe and less so severe cases of hyperglycemia. Alternative methods are especially helpful for those with non-insulin-dependent diabetes.
In severe cases , its advisable for healthcare professionals to take care of you.
First, they will likely inject insulin to your veins . In addition to this, they will rehydrate you with fluids, usually directly to your veins too. They will also give you nutrients at the same time, in the same manner.
This treatment gives some clues as to how to reduce blood sugar level immediately in less severe cases:
1) Stay hydrated drink water. Since being thirsty is a symptom of hyperglycemia/high blood glucose, youll probably want to be drinking plenty of water anyway. This helps with flushing out excess glucose.
2) Stay nourished. This is less straightforward, since eating food can often lead to even higher levels of blood glucose. But because youll be drinking a great deal of water , youll also be flushing out nutrients at the same time.
So, its worth considering eating something nourishing after youve lowered your blood sugar. Or, if you want to keep up your nutrients during hyperglycemia, consider drinking fluids without carbs and with electrolytes.
Find out more nutritional info on specific food items with our food database. Meanwhile, get advice from our Nutrition Consultant with Food and Diabetes!
Read Also: How To Use Sugar Me Smooth
Three Steps That Will Help
Step 1: drink water, not any other beverages that are made with water, like coffee, tea, or diet soda. Im speaking of water, plain or iced. This will help with rehydration because when your blood sugar is running on the high side, it can be from being dehydrated and can dehydrate you. We also eliminate excess blood sugar through urine.lots of water, of course, speed that process along.
Be Sure To Check Out Can Drinking Water Help My Blood Sugar?
Step 2: Stick to a very low-carb diet if your reading is running on the higher side. Choose foods that are protein like cheese, chicken, beef, pork, or eggs. These are straight protein foods that do not contain any carbohydrates. Once your blood sugar starts coming back to the target range, you can include carb-containing foods. This will just be a short period of time that you will need to go very low carb.
Be Sure To Check Out Sneaky Exercise For Your Diabetes Health
What If I Have Severe Low Blood Glucose And Cant Treat Myself
Glucagona hormone that raises blood glucose levelsis the best way to treat severely low blood glucose. Available as an injection or a nasal spray, glucagon will quickly raise your blood glucose level. Your doctor can prescribe you a glucagon kit for use in case of an emergency.
If your blood glucose level drops very low, you wont be able to treat it by yourself. Be prepared to address severely low blood glucose by
- talking with your doctor or health care team about when and how to use a glucagon emergency kit. If you have an emergency kit, regularly check the date on the package to make sure it hasnt expired.
- teaching your family, friends, and coworkers when and how to give you glucagon. Tell them to call 911 right away after giving you glucagon or if you dont have a glucagon emergency kit with you.
- wearing a medical alert identification bracelet or pendant. A medical alert ID tells other people that you have diabetes and need care right away. Getting prompt care can help prevent the serious problems that low blood glucose levels can cause.
You May Like: What Will Happen If Your Blood Sugar Is Too High