Low blood sugar at night, or nocturnal hypoglycemia, occurs when your child's glucose levels drop below normal while your child is asleep. A mild case of low blood sugar may cause no symptoms and resolve when your child eats something. In other instances, low blood sugar can lead to more serious symptoms like nightmares, especially in children with diabetes. The United States Department of Health and Human Services says that low blood sugar can happen quickly, and when it occurs while your child is sleeping, it can lead to bad dreams.
Causes
If your child does not eat a proper meal or snack before bedtime, she may experience nocturnal low blood sugar. The Nemours Foundation's Kids Health website says that this is common in children who have been suffering from illnesses such as the stomach virus, since they have not been eating due to loss of appetite or vomiting. If your child is diabetic and takes insulin, nocturnal hypoglycemia can occur if she takes her medication at the wrong time, takes too much or takes the wrong kind. Being physically active more than usual and not eating enough can also lead to low blood sugar.
Nightmares and Other Symptoms
Nightmares are usually vivid dreams that may seem real to your child. While low blood sugar is not the only reason your child would have a bad dream, it is one cause. The American Diabetes Association says that each child reacts differently to low blood sugar, and if your child experiences hypoglycemia during the nighttime hours, he can suffer from terrifying dreams. Kids Health adds that when a child wakes up from a nightmare, he may need comfort because it takes time to shake off the images in his brain. In addition to nightmares, low blood sugar can also cause shakiness, sweating, dizziness, confusion, difficulty speaking, anxiety, personality changes and strange behavior.
Treatment
If your child wakes from a nightmare, it may be useful to treat low blood sugar, if you suspect it, particularly if your child is diabetic. The American Diabetes Association recommends offering your child something to eat or drink that has between 10 and 15 g of carbohydrates and then checking her blood sugar level. Once her blood sugar level has been normalized, a snack that contains both carbohydrates and protein, such as crackers with peanut butter, should be given to your child. A small snack may also benefit children who have non-diabetes-related low blood sugar.
Prevention
To prevent recurrent hypoglycemia-related nightmares, serve your child a well-balanced meal or snack before bedtime to help stabilize blood sugar levels throughout the night. The United States Department of Health and Human Services recommends some type of protein to help prevent low blood sugar. Eating sugar on an empty stomach can also lead to low blood sugar, and avoiding this can help prevent your child from having nightmares related to low blood sugar.
