Diabetics need to carefully monitor and control blood glucose levels to avoid complications. This requires constant testing and learning how various foods and activities raise or lower blood sugar levels. If blood glucose gets too low, seizures can occur. If diabetic seizure symptoms occur, get immediate medical attention to prevent life threatening complications.
Confusion
The brain needs an adequate amount of sugar to function correctly. If blood sugar levels get too low from eating improperly or taking too much insulin, symptoms of a seizure may occur. Seizures due to diabetes, look the same as other kinds of seizures. There may be a period of confusion, dizziness, feeling out of it, or mood swings. These symptoms can be so mild that the patient or others may not even know that a seizure has occurred. In other cases, confusion and behavioral changes can be extreme. Seizure symptoms may last for seconds, or up to 15 minutes, claims the National Institutes of Health.
Shaking and Loss of Coordination
As blood sugar levels plummet, the body may begin to shake. It can become difficult to control movement and the person may become uncoordinated and fall, warns the National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse. Lack of coordination can affect any area of the body and can even make it challenging to speak. These symptoms may occur even though the person suffering the seizure does not lose consciousness. In other cases, the person may become unconscious and go into involuntary violent, jerking body movements called convulsions.
Strange Tastes and Smells
The symptoms experienced during a seizure, depend on the area of the brain affected. According to Merck, some people experience a strange taste in their mouths or abnormal smells. There may also be a tendency to involuntarily chew or smack the lips. In more severe seizures, the tongue may be bitten and the teeth may be clenched.
