Question for DOCTORS/NURSES about hypoglycemia?

Question

Hi, I have diagnosed myself on the internet that I have hypoglycemic disease. I am not diabetic, I wanted to know what are the two types of hypoclycemia that effects non diabetics and what should I eat?

Answer 1

Hypoglycemia (Low Blood Sugar) in People Without Diabetes



What is hypoglycemia?

Hypoglycemia is low blood sugar. It occurs when the level of sugar, or glucose, in the blood drops too low to give the body energy. The medical condition of low blood sugar occurs when all 3 of the following are present:

=Blood sugar is low.

=Low blood sugar is causing symptoms.

=The symptoms go away when blood sugar returns to normal



The symptoms go away when blood sugar returns to normal.

Fasting blood sugar levels are measured in mg/dL. A fasting blood sugar level of:

70 to 99 mg/dL is normal.

50 to 69 mg/dL is mildly low.

Less than 50 mg/dL is very low.

The bloodstream carries glucose—a type of sugar produced from the digestion of carbohydrates and other foods—to provide energy to cells throughout the body. Unused glucose is stored mainly in the liver as glycogen. Insulin, glucagon, and other hormone levels rise and fall to keep blood sugar in a normal range. Too little or too much of these hormones can cause blood sugar levels to fall too low (hypoglycemia)

Normally, blood glucose levels increase slightly after you eat a meal. When blood sugar rises, cells in the pancreas release insulin, causing the body to absorb glucose from the blood, which lowers the blood sugar level to normal. When blood sugar drops too low, the level of insulin declines and other cells in the pancreas release glucagon, which causes the liver to turn stored glycogen back into glucose and release it into the blood. Low blood sugar also triggers the release of hormones by the pituitary and adrenal glands. These hormones also help bring sugar back to normal.

Hypoglycemia is not a disease but a condition that results from a variety of causes.

What causes hypoglycemia?

Hypoglycemia is most commonly a complication of diabetes treatment, but it is otherwise rare.

Hypoglycemia may also result from:

Medicines, such as monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs), quinine sulfate, and salicylates (including aspirin).

Drinking too much alcohol.

Diseases that affect the pancreas, liver, kidneys, adrenal glands, or other organs.

Inherited problems with metabolism.

Rapid stomach emptying after a meal. This may happen after stomach surgery.

What are the symptoms?

The symptoms can vary depending on how low the blood sugar level drops.

Mild hypoglycemia can cause nausea, a jittery or nervous feeling, cold and clammy skin, sweating, hunger, and a rapid heartbeat.

Moderate hypoglycemia often makes you feel irritable, anxious, or confused. You may have blurred vision, feel unsteady, and have difficulty walking.

Severe hypoglycemia can lead to loss of consciousness, seizures, and coma—and it may be fatal.

Some medicines may mask symptoms of low blood sugar, including beta-blockers, which are often used to treat heart conditions and high blood pressure.

How is hypoglycemia diagnosed?

Doctors diagnose hypoglycemia using a medical history, physical examination, and tests to check blood sugar levels. Generally, you are diagnosed with the condition if a blood test shows you have low blood sugar and you have symptoms of hypoglycemia that go away after you eat carbohydrate such as sugar.

During a medical history, your doctor will ask about your symptoms—when and how often they occur, what brings them on, and how long they last. You also will be asked about any medicines you are taking and whether you have recently lost or gained weight.

A physical examination will also help your doctor look for the cause of your symptoms.

Doctors rely on laboratory tests to confirm low blood sugar. Although it would be best to do these tests when you are having symptoms, it usually isn't possible. Instead, tests are done to try to reproduce your symptoms.

How is hypoglycemia treated?

Treatment for a sudden (acute) episode of hypoglycemia involves eating or drinking some form of sugar to restore your blood sugar to a normal level. Episodes of hypoglycemia caused by a long-term (chronic) health condition are treated the same way. But prevention of future episodes requires treatment or cure of the long-term condition that is causing the hypoglycemia.

Although eating food or drinking beverages that contain sugar is all you need to do to treat many cases of acute hypoglycemia, you will need help if the condition is severe. Family members, coworkers, and friends should be aware of your condition and should call 911 or other emergency services if you become sleepy or unconscious.

What should you do in an emergency?

It is important to know what to do in an emergency when you have low blood sugar.

Emergency care for low blood sugar for people who are not taking insulin includes consuming some kind of quick-sugar food, such as fruit juice, as long as you are able to swallow. (Use this information if you do not know whether a person with hypoglycemia takes insulin.)

http://health.yahoo.com/blood-overview/h...

The link below will discuss about foods to eat or not to eat:

http://www.hypoglycemia.org/diet.asp

Answer 2

This is the second time I have come across a question similar to this one. You haven't really got your head around the concept of diabetes at all. All diabetics have a problem of HYPER-glycaemia, this means high blood sugar. The reason HYPO-glycaemia comes up in the context of diabetes is due to the effects of either oral anti-diabetic tablets or insulin, used to treat diabetes, which can sometimes take the sugar down too low.

So what you are complaining of is nothing at all to do with diabetes. Many effectively normal people experience periods of time with lowish blood sugars. This may make them mildly symptomatic, usually intense feelings of hunger and sometimes headache or light headedness. Commonly this occurs when they miss a meal, undergo prolonged vigorous exercise, or occasionally 2 hours after a meal, when the normal drop in blood sugar overshoots for a short time. In the days when ulcer surgery was still common, patients who had had a vagotomy and pyloroplasty also sometimes had a problem. They would develop a condition called 'dumping syndrome' and sometimes their blood sugars fell rapidly soon after eating. The final group of patients who can develop low sugars are those with the very rare pancreatic tumour, an insulinoma.

Overall 'normal' people who occasionally experience periods with low blood sugar, need no special treatment or diet, at most they could perhaps carry with them a couple of glucose sweets, which can be sucked to solve the problem in moments.

Answer 3

Sorry i am not a doc or a nurse but you need to go to the doctors to find this out as i myself started having hypoglycemic attacks which is were your blood sugar levels keep dropping i ended up in the hospital and was diagnosed with a rare condition called insulinoma that's why you can go on the internet a diagnose yourself i hope you listen good luck anyway god blessxxxxx

Answer 4

You should really leave diagnosis of any medical condition to the professionals.

Go see your doc to have a chat and if the doc thinks it necessary, blood work will be done. Your doctor will call you back to discuss the findings of the tests.

Don't be surprised or annoyed that it may be related to your diet. You may not be getting enough vitamins or fluids or you may be overdoing something by taking it too much.

If the results indicate a condition, your doc will be the best person to explain it to you, or even recommend you to see a specialist if necessary.

Answer 5

OK firstly, Hypoglycemia is a symptom rather than a disease. There will generally be an underlying cause that needs to be investigated, what do you mean you diagnosed yourself on the internet!?! I'm confused as to how you have this done with without  blood work being done? You need to have a chat with your GP, pop along and see him, this isn't really something one can diagnose themselves!

There are two types of hypoglycemia that can occur in people who do not have diabetes; Reactive (postprandial, or after meals) and fasting (post absorptive). Reactive hypoglycemia is not usually related to any underlying disease; fasting hypoglycemia generally is..

There are foods that are recommended if one has hypoglycemic episodes but your GP will want to investigate the underlying cause. Make an appointment with your GP, particularly if you suspect your blood sugar is low/symptomatic

Answer 6

Reactive hypoglycemia is a medical term describing recurrent episodes of symptomatic hypoglycemia occurring 2-4 hours after a high carbohydrate meal (or oral glucose load). It is thought to represent a consequence of excessive insulin release triggered by the carbohydrate meal but continuing past the digestion and disposal of the glucose derived from the meal.

Hypoglycemia is a condition characterized by an abnormally low level of blood sugar (glucose), your body's main energy source.

Hypoglycemia is commonly associated with diabetes. However, a wide variety of conditions, many of them rare, can cause low blood sugar in people without diabetes. Like fever, hypoglycemia isn't a disease itself — it's an indicator of a health problem.

Treatment of hypoglycemia involves short-term steps to get your blood sugar level back into a normal range and long-term steps by your doctor to identify and treat the underlying cause of hypoglycemia.

Hypoglycemia may also be caused by:

    * Insulin-secreting tumor of the pancreas

    * Liver disease

    * Ingestion of alcohol