Hypoglycemia, also called low blood sugar, is a condition that occurs when glucose drops below normal levels. People can have hypoglycemia without having diabetes, but diabetics do often have it as their blood sugar levels fluctuate. Hypoglycemia attacks can happen suddenly and can be treated by eating or drinking a small amount of food containing glucose. An ongoing diet plan is needed to control this condition.
Symptoms
The most common symptoms of hypoglycemia include faintness, dizziness, tremors, cold sweats, exhaustion, irritability, drowsiness and headaches. Other symptoms may include depression, anxiety, confused thinking and palpitations. The brain is most sensitive to changes in glucose levels, so symptoms such as nervousness, weakness and dizziness usually occur first.
Causes
Hypoglycemia in diabetics can be caused by taking too much medication for the amount of food eaten, thereby causing blood sugar to fall. In nondiabetics, the causes include excessive alcohol consumption, tumors, some critical illnesses and endocrine deficiencies, such as disorders of the adrenal glands. Most hypoglycemia happens when you haven't eaten, but in some cases, overeating refined carbohydrates at a meal can cause blood sugar to rise, then abruptly fall.
Tests
A simple test can be done on your own. If you suspect you have hypoglycemia, follow a diet of only meat, fish, low-carbohydrate vegetables, nuts and seeds and see if your symptoms improve. The medical test for hypoglycemia is the glucose tolerance test, a blood test lasting up to six hours in a clinic or laboratory. A sample is taken when you arrive, then each hour thereafter, after you drink a glucose solution. Your hourly blood sugar levels will be compared with normal blood sugar responses to determine whether you are hypoglycemic.
Diets
There are a couple schools of thought about what type of diet is best for hypoglycemia. Edward and Patricia Krimmel, researchers and authors of "The Low Blood Sugar Handbook," advocate a low-protein, high-complex carbohydrate and low-fat diet: 50 to 60 percent from acceptable carbohydrates; 10 to 12 percent from acceptable proteins; and 20 to 30 percent from mostly unsaturated fats.
The person who discovered hypoglycemia, Seale Harris, had a different idea. Harris recommended a low-carbohydrate, high-protein, moderate-fat diet. Several diets in the mainstream today are considered low-carb and are recommended for people with hypoglycemia. The Atkins diet is a very restrictive, almost no-carb diet in the beginning. For some people, the lack of carbohydrates is too extreme. Allowing more healthy carbohydrates are the diets known as The Zone, Protein Power, Sugar Busters, South Beach and the Carbohydrate Addict's Diet. These diets emphasize lean proteins, low-glycemic carbohydrates and healthy fats.
The Hypoglycemia Support Foundation published an excerpt from Roberta Ruggiero's book "The Do's and Don'ts of Hypoglycemia." Ruggiero believes the different diet approaches can be confusing and says the key is in individualization -- because each of us is biologically unique, each diet must be individually tailored.
Other Recommendations
Regardless of whether they're low- or high-carbohydrate, all diets recommend six small meals a day and the exclusion of white flour, sugar, alcohol, tobacco and caffeine. Breakfast is especially important for hypoglycemics. Plan ahead to have meals and snacks at proper times. Go easy on fruit and fruit juices, which have high sugar content. Make sure you replenish important nutrients, such as B3, zinc, biotin, chromium, magnesium, calcium and B6.
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