About a Low Blood Sugar Diet

Low blood sugar, hypoglycemia, is almost the opposite of diabetes. It makes the pancreas an overachiever, spiking the insulin level high to deal with sugar, but too high, so you have a huge drop in the sugar level. You get dizzy, confused, grumpy and may even pass out when this happens. Stress is a factor in hypoglycemia, so besides the low blood sugar diet, remember to chill.

Time Frame

• The goal of a low blood sugar diet is to stabilize the flow of insulin and keep your sugar levels steady. The best way to do this is eat every couple of hours.

Size

• Break your meal into mini meals. The all you can eat buffet is only good if you plan to camp out there the whole day. When you eat at home, eat only half your portion and reheat the other half later. Snack on nuts and seeds.

Types

• Everyone reacts differently. While most people tolerate fresh fruits, others need to completely remove offending sugars from their diet. Remember, fresh fruit is always the choice over juices and canned fruit. Work with your doctor closely until you no longer have hypoglycemic incidences.

Considerations

• Cut out candy, caffeine and nicotine. These spike the blood sugar and make symptoms worse.

Identification

• Use complex carbohydrates rather than simple carbs. Complex carbohydrates break down in the intestines into sugar so the process takes longer.

Effects

• Keep emergency food with you at all times. Peanut butter crackers or prepackaged cheese and crackers are great because they're easy to carry.