Hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar, is a medical condition in which your blood glucose falls below the level considered to be normal. While each laboratory varies, many consider a blood glucose level below 50 mg/dL or lower to indicate hypoglycemia. Symptoms may or may not be apparent at early stages; untreated hypoglycemia is occasionally fatal. Symptoms in males are identical to symptoms in females, and neither gender is at increased risk to develop the condition.
Symptoms
Subjective symptoms of low blood sugar include headache, blurry vision, weakness, dizziness, anxiety, hunger and skin tingling. You may feel as though your heart is pounding harder than normal, explains the text, "Medical-Surgical Nursing." Symptoms of hypoglycemia you may witness in a man include confusion, trembling, perspiration, slurred speech, fainting and seizures.
Symptom Causes
Many of the symptoms of low blood sugar occur because the brain becomes low on glucose, which it depends on for energy. Other symptoms occur because of the effect of hypoglycemia on the nervous system. Many cases of hypoglycemia are due to adverse effects of diabetes medicines, including insulin and oral medications. Some cases are due to other endocrine disorders, a tumor, poor food intake or another medical condition. Rarely, a man is found to have recurrent hypoglycemia in the absence of any other identifiable condition.
Treatment of Symptoms
Acute hypoglycemia symptoms are treated by raising the blood sugar. Mild cases may be treated by drinking milk and eating crackers, for example, while moderate cases may call for fruit juice or a glucose tablet. Severe hypoglycemia requires medical treatment that may include intravenous fluids or an injection of glucagon. Long-term treatment of hypoglycemia involves treatment of the underlying condition or a diabetes medication adjustment.
Prevention
To avoid hypoglycemia symptoms, eat small meals and abstain from concentrated sweets. Eat meals and snacks that contain a balance of protein, fat and carbohydrate. Don't go too many hours without eating, which means you should eat a healthy breakfast and a light bedtime snack every day. If you have diabetes, maintain good control of your blood sugar by frequent glucose monitoring, adherence to diet and following all physician instructions regarding insulin and other medications.
References
- "Medical-Surgical Nursing"; Donna Ignatavicius, M.S., R.N. et al.; 2002
- MayoClinic.com; Hypoglycemia; Jan 2010
