What Is a Low Blood Sugar Level Reading

On this folio:

• What is low blood glucose?
• How common is low blood glucose?
• Who is more likely to develop low blood glucose?
• What are the symptoms of depression blood glucose?
• What are the complications of low blood glucose?
• What causes low blood glucose in people with diabetes?
• How can I prevent low blood glucose if I take diabetes?
• How do I treat low claret glucose?
• What if I have severe depression blood glucose and can't treat myself?
• Clinical Trials for Low Blood Glucose

What is low blood glucose?

Low blood glucose, too called low blood sugar or hypoglycemia, occurs when the level of glucose in your blood drops below what is good for you for you. For many people with diabetes, this means a claret glucose reading lower than 70 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL).¹ Your number might be unlike, so bank check with your doctor or wellness care team to find out what claret glucose level is low for y'all.

How common is depression claret glucose?

Low blood glucose is common amongst people with blazon ane diabetes and among people with blazon 2 diabetes who take insulin or some other diabetes medicines. In a large global study of people with diabetes who take insulin, four in v people with type 1 diabetes and nearly half of those with type 2 diabetes reported a depression blood sugar upshot at least once over a 4-week flow.ⁱⁱ

Severely low blood glucose, defined equally when your blood glucose level drops so low you lot can't care for it yourself, is less common. Among U.South. adults with diabetes who take insulin or some diabetes medicines that help the pancreas release insulin into the claret, 2 in 100 may develop severely depression blood glucose each year.³

Who is more likely to develop low blood glucose?

You are more than likely to develop low blood glucose if you⁴

• have type 1 diabetes
• have insulin or some other diabetes medicines
• are age 65 or older⁵
• had low blood glucose earlier
• have other wellness issues, such equally kidney illness, heart disease, or cognitive damage

What are the symptoms of low blood glucose?

Symptoms of low blood glucose tend to come on quickly and can vary from person to person. Every bit Table ane below shows, symptoms can range from mild to severe.

Tabular array 1. Symptoms of low blood glucose⁶

Mild-to-Moderate	Severe
If your blood glucose level is low, you may experience shaky or jittery hungry tired giddy, empty-headed, dislocated, or irritable your heart is chirapsia too fast or not steadily y'all have a headache you can't run across or speak clearly	If your claret glucose level is very depression, your encephalon may end working as it should. You may lose consciousness have a seizure Severe hypoglycemia is dangerous and needs to be treated right away.

Depression claret glucose during sleep

Your blood glucose level can drib while you sleep and stay low for several hours, causing serious problems.⁷ Symptoms of low blood glucose while you slumber can include

• crying out or having nightmares
• sweating plenty to make your pajamas or sheets damp
• feeling tired, irritable, or dislocated afterward waking up

Although you lot may non wake upwards or notice any symptoms, depression blood glucose can interfere with your slumber, which may affect your quality of life, mood, and ability to work. Having low claret glucose during sleep tin can also make y'all less probable to discover and answer to symptoms of low claret glucose during the twenty-four hour period.

What are the complications of low blood glucose?

Balmy-to-moderate depression blood glucose can be easily treated. But severely low blood glucose can cause serious complications, including passing out, blackout, or death.

Repeated episodes of low blood glucose can lead to

• loftier blood glucose levels, if worry or fear of depression blood glucose keeps you from taking the medicines you need to manage your diabetes^eight
• hypoglycemia unawareness, a condition in which you don't observe any symptoms of low blood glucose until your claret glucose level has dropped very depression

What causes depression blood glucose in people with diabetes?

Low blood glucose levels can be a side effect of insulin or some other medicines that help your pancreas release insulin into your blood. Taking these tin lower your blood glucose level.

Ii types of diabetes pills can crusade depression claret glucose

• sulfonylureas, usually taken one time or twice per day, which increment insulin over several hours
• meglitinides, taken earlier meals to promote a brusque-term increment in insulin

Insulin and some other diabetes medicines tin can lower your blood glucose level.

The post-obit may also lower your claret glucose level

• Not eating or drinking enough carbohydrates (carbs). When yous consume foods or drink beverages that comprise carbohydrates, your digestive organisation breaks downwardly the sugars and starches into glucose. Glucose then enters your bloodstream and raises your blood glucose level. If you don't consume enough carbohydrates or skip or delay any meals, your blood glucose level could drib lower than what is salubrious for you.
• Fasting. Standing to have medicines that lower your glucose level while fasting for a medical process or for other purposes can also increase the risk for depression blood glucose.
• Increasing physical activity. Increasing your physical activity level across your usual routine tin lower your blood glucose level for up to 24 hours after the activity. Learn more than about diabetes, eating, and physical activeness.
• Drinking too much booze without enough food. Alcohol makes information technology harder for your body to keep your blood glucose level steady, particularly if yous haven't eaten in a while. Alcohol tin too keep you from feeling the first symptoms of low blood glucose, which can pb to astringent symptoms.
• Beingness ill. When y'all're ill, you may not be able to swallow as much or keep food downwards, which can lower blood glucose.

How can I forbid low blood glucose if I have diabetes?

If yous take insulin or other medicines that lower blood glucose, the post-obit actions may aid you prevent low blood glucose levels.

• Ask your doctor or health care team how to check your blood glucose level. The most common way to practise then is by using a blood glucose meter. If you take hypoglycemia unawareness or have low blood glucose often, a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) may exist a adept option. The CGM measures your blood glucose level at regular times and can sound an alert if it drops below your target range.
• Make sure your regular eating programme includes meals, snacks, and beverages with enough carbohydrates to help keep your blood glucose level in your target range. Acquit a source of fast-acting carbohydrate, such as glucose tablets or a juice box, with yous. Likewise, if you drink alcoholic beverages, it'southward safer to eat some food at the same time.
• Be safe during practice or physical action. Physical activity can lower your blood glucose during the activity and for hours afterward. You may need to bank check your blood glucose earlier, during, and after physical activity and arrange your medicine or carbohydrate intake to prevent low claret glucose. For example, you might swallow a snack earlier physical activity to prevent low claret glucose.
• Work with your md or health care team to foreclose low claret glucose. Ask your team if any of your diabetes medicines tin can cause depression claret glucose and how you can prevent and treat symptoms. Work with your doctor or wellness care team to adjust your diabetes management programme as needed.

Some CGMs let you track your blood glucose levels using a minor sensor attached to your arm or abdomen and view the information on your smartphone.

How do I treat low blood glucose?

If you begin to feel ane or more symptoms of low blood glucose, cheque your blood glucose level. If your blood glucose level is below your target or less than 70 mg/dL, follow these steps

1. Swallow or beverage 15 to 20 grams of glucose or carbohydrates right away. Examples include
   • four glucose tablets or ane tube of glucose gel.
   • 1/two cup (four ounces) of fruit juice—not depression-calorie or reduced-sugar juice. If you have kidney disease, don't drink orangish juice because it has a lot of potassium. Apple, grape, or cranberry juice are practiced options.
   • 1/two tin (four to 6 ounces) of soda—non low-calorie or reduced-saccharide soda.
   • 1 tablespoon of sugar, dear, or corn syrup.
2. Wait xv minutes and check your blood glucose level again. If your glucose level is still depression, eat or drink another fifteen to 20 grams of glucose or carbohydrates.
3. Cheque your blood glucose level again subsequently some other xv minutes. Repeat these steps until your glucose level is back to your target range.
4. If your next meal is more than ane hr away, have a snack to keep your blood glucose level within a range that is salubrious for you. Try crackers or a slice of fruit.

If your blood glucose is beneath your target, accept 15 to xx grams of glucose or carbohydrates right away.

Treating low blood glucose if you take medicines that slow down digestion

Some diabetes medicines tiresome downwardly the digestion of carbohydrates to go on blood glucose levels from rising also loftier after you eat. If you lot develop low claret glucose while taking these medicines, you lot volition demand to take glucose tablets or glucose gel correct away. Eating or drinking other sources of carbohydrates won't heighten your blood glucose level quickly enough.

What if I take severe depression claret glucose and can't treat myself?

Glucagon—a hormone that raises blood glucose levels—is the all-time style to care for severely low claret glucose. Available as an injection or a nasal spray, glucagon will rapidly enhance your blood glucose level. Your medico can prescribe you a glucagon kit for use in instance of an emergency.

If your claret glucose level drops very depression, you won't exist able to treat information technology past yourself. Be prepared to address severely low claret glucose past

• talking with your doctor or health care team about when and how to use a glucagon emergency kit. If you have an emergency kit, regularly check the date on the bundle to make sure information technology hasn't expired.
• teaching your family, friends, and coworkers when and how to give yous glucagon. Tell them to call 911 correct away after giving you glucagon or if you lot don't accept a glucagon emergency kit with yous.
• wearing a medical warning identification bracelet or pendant. A medical warning ID tells other people that you lot have diabetes and demand intendance correct away. Getting prompt intendance can assistance foreclose the serious problems that low blood glucose levels can crusade.

Clinical Trials for Low Blood Glucose

The NIDDK conducts and supports clinical trials in many diseases and weather condition, including diabetes. The trials expect to find new ways to forbid, detect, or care for disease and amend quality of life.

What are clinical trials for low claret glucose?

Clinical trials—and other types of clinical studies—are function of medical research and involve people like you. When you volunteer to accept part in a clinical study, you help doctors and researchers learn more than near affliction and meliorate health intendance for people in the future.

Researchers are studying many aspects of low blood glucose levels in diabetes, such as

• how to diagnose and treat depression claret glucose among people with diabetes
• medicines that can care for symptoms of low blood glucose in people with hypoglycemia unawareness
• educational approaches to reduce fearfulness of depression blood glucose, which can make it harder for you to control your diabetes

Find out if clinical studies are correct for you.

Watch a video of NIDDK Director Dr. Griffin P. Rodgers explaining the importance of participating in clinical trials.

What clinical studies for low blood glucose are looking for participants?

You tin can view a filtered list of clinical studies on low claret glucose that are federally funded, open, and recruiting at www.ClinicalTrials.gov. You lot can expand or narrow the listing to include clinical studies from industry, universities, and individuals; however, the National Institutes of Wellness does not review these studies and cannot ensure they are safe. Always talk with your health intendance provider before yous participate in a clinical study.

References

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Source: https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/diabetes/overview/preventing-problems/low-blood-glucose-hypoglycemia

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