Can Blood Sugar Be Too Low?

By John H Markus - 2007-09-04 - Viewed 1520 times. Find more articles like this in our Diabetes information category.

Small - Big

Email article       Print

Diabetes is a dangerous condition. It is best controlled with insulin in type I diabetics.

These individuals have been affected with diabetes since childhood or developed it later in life. It usually follows a hereditary pattern. Type II diabetics ,usually develop the condition later in life.

Avoidable factors such as a sedentary lifestyle, bad diet, and obesity are common. Type II diabetics do not need to inject insulin, if they can control their blood sugar levels with diet and exercise and if necessary, the addition of oral medications. If this does not work, they will also need insulin for blood sugar control.

Insulin is a wonderful discovery for people afflicted with diabetes. It acts in the body, the same way the insulin from our pancreas does for controlling blood sugar levels in the blood. Without insulin, diabetics would live a shorter life due to the complications from the disease. It truly is a miracle discovery. The lifestyle of the diabetic person can return to normal, well almost. Injecting substances into our bodies is not normal, but it is necessary replacement therapy for these individuals.

Insulin and blood sugar control is a tedious process, and should be taken seriously. There are long acting 24 hour insulins, shorter acting 6-18 hour insulins, and fast acting insulins. Often, the patient is put on more than one kind for more rigorous control. Another marvelous invention is the blood glucose monitor. Previous to it's presence in the diabetic world, Glucose samples were tested with a person's urine. The readings acquired for urine were not an accurate indicator of what was going on in the body at that moment. The urine tests gave an approximate reading. And the reading at that time may have given an indication of what was going on in the body hours before. Now, with blood glucose monitors, a person can check the blood sugar level in their body at any moment, and as often as they wish.

Many times, a diabetic person will become over aggressive in their blood sugar control. They will test their blood sugar level and inject enough insulin to cover the reading. This injection is also given to control caloric intake in the hours ahead. This all well and good in a perfect world. But if it were a perfects world people would not be afflicted with diabetes.

Things happen. Let's say Dan the diabetic has been given a sliding scale to follow insulin therapy. This takes into account the present reading and the caloric intake of Dan in hours to come. Ideally, this works well. And in most cases it does. But what happens when there are variables. Dan is on his way home from work to have dinner with his beautiful family. Bang! his front tire blows out. Dan pulls of the busy road and proceeds to change the tire. It is 95 degrees outside and humid. Dan has a difficult time loosening the lug nuts, which were last tightened by an automatic fastener in the tire shop. He finally changes the tire. Dan has burned a fair amount of calories in the tire changing process. Now he is caught up in rush hour traffic. Dan is on his way to getting home 2 hours later than he had planned. The insulin level in Dan's body does not adjust to the caloric output ot the delayed schedule, as it would in a non-diabetic person. So the insulin level runs high and blood sugar low. This is not a good situation.

Hypoglycemia ( low blood sugar ) has adverse effects. As it starts to run low, the patient becomes hot and clammy. Some shakiness sets in. If it goes lower the symptoms get progressively worse. They can exhibit convulsive type shakes. They become disoriented and confused. Communicating becomes a problem. If no one around them, knows about their condition, thing could worsen. In the worst case scenario a patient on insulin, running low blood sugar could go into insulin induced shock. Possibly, the patient could go into a coma. And whether that patient get better or not, depend on what action is taken and how soon it is taken to change the blood sugar levels.

This is very preventable. There are products, prescription, over the counter, fruit juices, candy and more. We will just talk about some over the counter products you can purchase at your local drugstore. The diabetic person should at all times, carry with him glucose tablets, glucose gel, or glucose solutions. All of these are absorbed quickly from the gastrointestinal tract, right into the bloodstream. As soon as the patient feels any symptoms of low blood glucose, he should ingest a glucose product previously mentioned. Or if he runs into a predicament, like Dan did, then he should take it as a precautionary measure. This will prevent severe hypoglycemic reactions from occurring.

My diabetic friends, please carry one or more of the glucose products mentioned on your person. As it has been said - S**t Happens! It may not be your fault, if it happens. But you are going to be the one to suffer the consequences. It is, also, a good idea to make those you are with aware of your condition. They could turn out to be a life saver. Take your blood glucose readings. Monitor your blood glucose. Use your insulin. Eat what you were prepared to eat. And, carry those oral glucose products with you at all times.

John has been in the health care business since 1971. He is a registered pharmacist. John has been married to a beautiful woman with diabetes since 1975. He has studied exercise, its' effects on the body, and on medical conditions for over 30 years. He has a related website at www.feelmorelife.com.

You can print this article by clicking the printer icon at the top this of page.

Ask, answer questions or add more facts concerning "Can Blood Sugar Be Too Low?" below.
Your comment will NOT show up right away, it will be sent for approval before it will appear here. Please bookmark this page so you can check back for possible replies and answers to your questions.