Symptoms Of High Blood Sugar
Learning to recognize the symptoms of hyperglycemia can help you successfully manage your diabetes.
Some people with diabetes immediately feel the symptoms of high blood sugar. Others dont because their symptoms are mild or vague.
Symptoms of hyperglycemia typically begin when your blood glucose goes above per deciliter . Symptoms can worsen the longer its untreated.
Symptoms of a blood sugar spike may include:
- frequent urination
What Are The Symptoms Of Eating Too Much Sugar
So how do you know youre eating too much sugar? What are the symptoms? Here are 16 signs youre eating too much sugar and exactly what to do if you think you are overdosing on the sweet stuff. And if youre looking to make more changes, be sure to check out these 21 Best Healthy Cooking Hacks of All Time.
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How Is Hyperglycemia Diagnosed
If you have diabetes and notice a sudden change in your blood sugar levels during your home monitoring, you should alert your doctor of your symptoms. The increase in blood sugar may affect your treatment plan.
Regardless of whether you have diabetes, if you begin experiencing any symptoms of hyperglycemia, you should speak to your doctor. Before going to your appointment, you should note what symptoms youre experiencing. You should also consider these questions:
- Has your diet changed?
- Have you had enough water to drink?
- Are you under a lot of stress?
- Were you just in the hospital for surgery?
- Were you involved in an accident?
Once at your doctors appointment, your doctor will discuss all of your concerns. Theyll perform a brief physical exam and discuss your family history. Your doctor will also discuss your target blood sugar level.
If youre age 59 or younger, a safe blood sugar range is generally between 80 and 120 milligrams per deciliter . This is also the projected range for people who dont have any underlying medical conditions.
People who are age 60 or older and those who have other medical conditions or concerns may have levels between 100 and 140 mg/dL.
Your doctor may conduct an A1C test to determine what your average blood sugar level has been in recent months. This is done by measuring the amount of blood sugar attached to the oxygen-carrying protein hemoglobin in your red blood cells.
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Correcting High Blood Sugar Levels With Insulin
If you take insulin, one way to reduce blood sugar is to inject insulin.
However, be careful as insulin can take 4 hours or longer to be fully absorbed, so you need to make sure you take into account how much insulin you may already have in your body that is yet to be absorbed by the blood. Insulin that is yet to be absorbed by the blood is called active insulin.
If you decide to correct with insulin, watch you dont over correct as this can lead to hypoglycemia and can be dangerous, particularly so before bed.
How To Efficiently Treat High Blood Sugar
There are many different treatment methods for high blood sugar. Treatment depends on the type of diabetes, the severity of high blood sugar, duration of having diabetes, and many other factors. This means that one persons diabetes treatment plan will likely look much different than someone elses.
Healthy diet: Carbohydrates in foods like fruits, certain vegetables, legumes, grains, and milk turn into sugar when digested, which means they have a big impact on blood sugar levels. A healthy diet for diabetes should emphasize fiber-rich carbohydrates and eat carbohydrates consistently throughout the day to promote steady blood sugars.
Blood sugar levels can improve by eating a healthy diet such as a Mediterranean diet or following the Plate Method, combined with other healthy lifestyle habits.
A Mediterranean diet focuses on nutrient-dense foods, avoids refined sugars and red meat, and has improved health outcomes, including improved blood sugar levels and improved cardiovascular outcomes. A Mediterranean diet includes foods such as:
Physical activity: 150 minutes per week of moderate to vigorous activity is recommended for people with and without diabetes. Strength or resistance training a few days per week is also recommended. It can help reduce insulin resistance and improve blood sugars by increasing the amount of glucose absorbed by the muscles to use as fuel.
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The Kidneys: Your Internal Waste Management System
The kidneys are two organs that rest on opposite sides of the spine. Think of them as the TSA of your bloodstream: They scan the blood for unwanted acids and excess minerals and usher the waste products out of the body through the urine. But they also play a surprising role in regulating blood sugar levels.
Specifically, the kidneys remove sugar from the blood and use it as their own source of energy, which provides the fuel they need to function.
Whats more, in partnership with the liver, the kidneys perform a process called gluconeogenesis, which produces sugar and releases it into the blood for the body to use as fuel.
Finally, kidneys responsibility to filter waste comes into play. The kidneys filters, called glomeruli, remove sugar from urine. Then, sodium-glucose cotransporters often referred to as SGLTs reabsorb the filtered sugar, moving it to the bloodstream.
When these filters are forced to work too hard, they can become permanently damaged, leading to the development of diabetic kidney disease and, eventually, kidney failure.
Why Does Blood Sugar Go Up At Night
There are many factors that can cause your blood sugar to increase at night. For example: what food you ate during the day, how much and when you exercised, whether you ate snacks before bed, the timing of your insulin doses, and your stress level. You can experience different patterns of high blood sugar at night. You may start with high glucose when you go to bed, start the night in range but go high several hours later, or spend most of the night in range until the hours just before you wake up. By identifying your bodys patterns, you can figure out what is causing your high blood sugar and how to address it.
Common causes of a glucose increase at night include:
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Being Dehydrated When You Have Diabetes
Having a temperature or being sick can lead to dehydration. In some cases, severe dehydration and very high blood sugar levels can mean that you need to go into hospital.
So its important to be prepared and follow our advice on coping when youre sick. You might want to give this information to a friend or family member, so they can help you if you get sick.
Youre Getting Yeast Infections More Often Than Usual
Hyperglycemia may lead you to get more frequent genital yeast infections. The culprit is often a type of yeast known as Candida albicans, per the ADA. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in females the symptoms can include: vaginal itching, redness or soreness pain during sexual intercourse pain or discomfort during urination and thick, abnormal vaginal discharge. While yeast infections are common in people who dont have diabetes, having more glucose in your blood puts you at higher risk of getting them. The yeast feeds off the glucose, and if your blood sugar is high theres more glucose in the urinary tract, explains Bandukwala. Uncircumcised men with hyperglycemia are also at risk, he says.
Were also seeing this happen a little more now with patients who take SGLT-2 inhibitors, which force the body to expel more glucose through the urine, the endocrinologist adds. The FDA has added a warning to the prescribing information for SGLT-2 inhibitors about a far more rare and potentially fatal genital condition, known as necrotizing fasciitis of the perineum, or Fourniers gangrene .
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How Do You Feel If Blood Sugar Is High
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Menopause Starts Earlier Than You Think
Menopause doesnt happen overnight, but rather it comes in a series of phases. The first phase is called Perimenopause. In perimenopause, the hormone production in the ovaries begins to slowly decrease and menstruation becomes irregular.
The hormonal shift in this early phase of menopause can actually trigger low blood sugars more often, especially at night. Of course, many women in perimenopause experience the typical menopause symptoms such as rapid heartbeat, sweating and hot flashes which can be mistaken for the symptoms of hypoglycemia. To be on the safe side, You may want to monitor your blood sugar more often.
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When Is Blood Sugar Considered To Be Too High Or Too Low
Slight fluctuations in blood sugar levels are completely normal, and also happen every day in people who dont have diabetes, in response to the food they eat. Between around 60 and 140 milligrams of sugar per deciliter of blood is considered to be healthy. This is equivalent to a blood sugar concentration of between 3.3 and 7.8 mmol/l. Millimoles per liter is the unit that blood sugar is measured in. It describes the amount of a certain substance per liter.
If someone has readings over 7.8 mmol/l , they are considered to have hyperglycemia. These high blood sugar levels mainly occur if there isn’t enough insulin or the insulin doesn’t work properly. Without the effect of insulin, the organs can’t make good use of the sugar in the blood, so the sugar builds up. If type 1 diabetes is left untreated, blood sugar levels can increase to over 27.8 mmol/l . Such high levels tend to be uncommon in type 2 diabetes.
Blood sugar levels below 3.3 mmol/l are considered to be too low. But, as you can see in the illustration below, there are no clear-cut borders between normal blood sugar levels and too high or too low blood sugar levels.
Blood sugar: Normal range between hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia
Key Points About Hyperglycaemia
| Seek urgent medical advice if you have high blood glucose and experience the following symptoms: |
These symptoms could be a sign of more serious complications of hyperglycaemia, such as diabetic ketoacidosis or a hyperosmolar hyperglycaemic state, and you may need to be looked after in hospital. |
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Hyperosmolar Hyperglycemic Nonketotic Syndrome
This mostly affects elderly people. As glucose builds up in your blood, your body tries to get rid of it through your urine.
At first, you pee a lot. Over time, you pee less, but when you do, itâs very dark. This condition can lead to dehydration, coma, and death.
Get medical help right away if you have any of these warning signs:
- Blood sugar level over 600 mg/dL
- Extreme thirst that may later go away
- Warm, dry skin that doesnât sweat
- Fever over 101 F
Why You Still Need To Exercise If You Have Diabetes
Despite all of the excuses you may come up with to skip the gym when you have neuropathy, you have even more reasons to make exercise a priority if youre managing this complication. Thats because exercise is actually good for neuropathy.
One of the best ways to prevent progression of diabetic neuropathy is to stay active, Machowsky says. For instance, in one study published in September 2012 in the Journal of Diabetes and Its Complications, all it took was 10 weeks of exercise to significantly reduce pain and symptoms in men and women with diabetes-related neuropathy. In that time frame, the participants nerve health and function also improved.
Thats not exactly surprising when you consider what researchers already know about the benefits of exercise for diabetes. Physical activity is a great way to keep your blood sugar levels in check, improve insulin sensitivity, and reduce inflammation, Machowsky says. Plus, by undoing some of the blood vessel damage that can occur with diabetes, exercise can help increase the flow of blood, oxygen, and other nutrients to nerve cells, further helping to improve neuropathic symptoms.
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Signs Your Blood Sugar Is Too High
Did you know that too high blood sugar can lead to serious health problems? If you suffer from diabetes, then your blood sugar levels might be too high.
If you’re worried that yours is and don’t know where to start, this blog post will delve into some of the early signs and symptoms of high blood sugar and offer tips on lowering your blood sugar if needed.
What Can Happen If My Blood Sugar Stays High For Too Long
Having high blood sugar every once in a while isnt as big of a concern as having chronically high blood sugar levels.
High blood sugar damages the arteries and vessels supplying blood to all of the bodys organs. This means that any part of the body can become damaged from chronic hyperglycemia since all aspects of the body rely on blood supply.
Some of the complications from chronic high blood sugar include:
- Heart disease: people with diabetes are two to four times more likely to die from cardiovascular disease than those without diabetes. People with diabetes are also more likely to have high blood pressure, which is another risk factor for heart disease. A heart attack is one potential complication of heart disease.Cholesterol goals are more strict for people with diabetes because of this increased risk. Elevated levels of LDL cholesterol and low levels of HDL cholesterol are some risk factors for developing heart disease.
According to the American Diabetes Association , these are the goals for blood sugar in those with diabetes, though individual blood sugar goals may vary:
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Stages And Symptoms Of Migraine Headaches
Many people are surprised to learn that migraines are more than just bad headaches. In fact, migraine headaches care a type of neurological condition that causes multiple symptoms, including debilitating headaches. Other symptoms like nausea, vomiting, tingling, numbness, and sensitivity are also symptoms of migraines. Some people may experience dizziness, feel faint, or notice pain on only one part of the head. Here are the three stages of migraine headaches and what symptoms typically occur at those times.
You Say Sugar I Say Glucose
Glucose
Sucrose
Fructose
Is sugar in a doughnut the same as blood sugar? Lets clear up the confusion: Sugar can have many different names, with different meanings.
When doctors and scientists talk about sugar in the blood, they often use the word glucose. Glucose is a simple carbohydrate, also known as a monosaccharide . This can also be called blood sugar.
Unlike sucrose or fructose , you wont be able to find glucose in the grocery store.
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Does Hypoglycemia Cause Weight Gain
There is much debate surrounding the effects of hypoglycemia on weight gain. Some research suggests that hypoglycemia may lead to weight gain, while other research finds no link between hypoglycemia and weight gain. This is an important question to ask as it can influence individuals decisions about whether or not to take medication for their diabetes.
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A Few Final Notes On Keeping Blood Sugar Stable
Taking an active, intentional approach to your blood sugar levels is crucial to your quality of life and overall health, ONeill says. Avoiding too-high or too-low blood sugar levels will help you avoid adverse symptoms and health complications, and staying within your target range can enable you to feel your best and do whatever you want to do in life, she says.
Test your blood sugar regularly, listen to your body, and dont ever hesitate to reach out to your doctor.
Additional reporting by Karen Appold.
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