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Behavior Signs of Low Blood Sugar

Low blood sugar, also called hypoglycemia, occurs when blood glucose drops below normal levels, according to National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse. Glucose is an important source of energy for the body, found in foods rich in carbohydrates, like rice, potatoes, bread, cereal and fruit. Hypoglycemia can affect people with a low-carbohydrate diet, but it is also a dangerous side effect of diabetes treatment, and it can cause seizure and coma. Severe hypoglycemic crises in diabetics can be prevented by observing behavior signs, such as mental confusion, nervousness and dizziness.

  1. Mental Confusion

    • Mental confusion and weakness are part of a biological alert mechanism to the low glucose supply in the bloodstream and consequent need to eat. These symptoms quickly improve after eating, but when glucose is not provided, the body starts to use body fat and ultimately, muscular cells. However, in diabetics under insulin therapy, this can escalate to a hypoglycemic seizure, due to their lack of natural blood sugar control.

    Nervousness

    • According to National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse, nervousness, shakiness and difficulty speaking are other behavior symptoms of low blood sugar. In non-diabetic people, these symptoms are related to low blood sugar if they happen within four hours after the last meal. To treat hypoglycemia in between meals, people should have a snack or fruit juice. Diabetics should wait 15 minutes and check blood sugar level, and repeat the treatment until it reaches 70 mg/dL or above.

    Dizziness

    • Dizziness is also part of the alert mechanism triggered by epinephrine and other hormones when our blood sugar is low, according to National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse. However, if normal conditions are not restored after eating, dizziness can be related to other problems, such as labyrinthitis, an inflammation in the inner ear. In a Hypoglycemia Support Foundation online survey with hypoglycemic patients, 79 percent reported dizziness as a symptom of the condition.

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