Looking for information on low blood sugar

I'm hoping some here have had this same issue. For several years I've had to deal with low to barely normal blood sugar. The doctors I've seen either tell me to just eat more sugar, or the only other option is to have part of my pancreas removed. So yes I eat more sugar than anyone I know to keep it up, and no not having any of it removed. If it's not done perfect (good luck with that), then its being on insulin from now on. Does anyone know of any other treatments?

a reply to: boredhere74

Hi, not really sure about giving advice about low blood sugar, but check out Youtube for a very informative lady called...

Jessie Inchauspé

She knows her stuff, is a scientist and is cute too. Plenty of info about blood sugar, diet, eating and health.

Good luck and I hope things pick up for you.

a reply to: nerbot

Ok thanks, I'll check her out. I'll take any help I can get.

Do you suffer any ill effects due the low blood sugar or is it just a test result? I wonder if people on keto diets have low blood sugar.

a reply to: quietspectator

Yes, it goes from headache, very low energy, confusion, heart rate goes crazy, feels like a heart attack (or what I would guess), it's not fun at all. Just in my case after lots of trial and error, if it gets to 80 or so symptoms start and get worse the lower it gets.

something else going on . do you take good vitamins? do you eat good? try paleo diet, start juicing, take black seed oil

a reply to: boredhere74

As a youngster...I had Hypo-glycemia (low) from drinking so many Pepsi's, the Insulin knocked out in triples dropping the sugar.

Too much, lots of insulin. Lots of insulin? No, or little b sugar levels.

Listen. Take care of yourself. Everything in moderation always, any way!😎✌️

a reply to: mysterioustranger

That's just it, I drink water 95% of the time. I eat decent, and take vit's and minerals. I'm at my wits end with it.

originally posted by: boredhere74
a reply to: mysterioustranger

That's just it, I drink water 95% of the time. I eat decent, and take vit's and minerals. I'm at my wits end with it.

I would suggest you see a dietician. Diabetics follow a strict diet to keep from getting low and high spikes.

When you eat your pancreas releases insulin to metabolize what you've consumed. If your pancreas doesn't function properly the insulin is released unregulated, so high carbs/sugar can cause an 'insulin dump'. The trick is to control what goes in so you don't overwhelm your pancreas.

For what it's worth hypoglycemia in people who don't have diabetes is uncommon. A fasting glucose tolerance test will show how well your pancreas is functioning over a three hour period.

I suffered from the same symptoms as you, and an ordinary blood draw always came back within limits, but my primary wasn't convinced, The GTT was the proof I needed, and proper dietary changes stopped the horrible effects of unregulated insulin production.

Here's an article on non-diabetic hypoglycemia that lists some of the possible causes.
[www.medicinenet.com...]

No matter what's causing it, you'll find dietary adjustments and control will bring you immense relief. Good luck!

I have had hypoglycemia since I was young. Seems like I lack appropriate enzymes genetically to break apart sucrose and mannose properly from researching things. It used to stay around a hundred but dive down to a too low amount sometimes after eating certain foods...insulin would spike when eating sugar and carbs and wipe out the actual glucose that I had I guess.

Sugar shakes I have always had which sucks which forced me to go get peanut butter cups which would work if I ate four of them. But other things just triggered a temporary fix and I would just get them back in a short time.

Nuts seem to work but are not super fast at working to solve the issue. Also related to this is spinny head sometimes.

My problem seems to stem from a tiny amount of paternal genetics from an inuit ancestor long ago. But I guess there are other genetic ancestral groups that also have these traits too. Some Asians have them and inuit is considered asian genetics.

Consuming a lot of sugar which cannot be metabolized triggers insulin excess which depletes the glucose floating around. I can burn certain fats better than sugars and carbs apparently, but the trouble is I have a mix of European genetics and did not inherit all the inuit genes so I cannot survive on an inuit diet either.

I learned to control this by experimenting on myself and now avoid sugar consumption, a small glutamine supplement killed my craving for sugars and many carbs so now sweets are not craved anymore that can trigger the excess insulin.

It is way more complex than I care to explain but everyone is a little different in the reason for hypoglycemia. Hypoglycemia is actually classified as a kind of diabetes because diabetes actually is defined as improper regulation of sugar metabolism even though it is opposite of hyperglycemia.

If they mess with your pancreas then you are dependent on insulin, and the pancreas does not just produce insulin, it creates other metabolic enzymes and specialized metabolic chemistries.

Are you talking about Hypoglycemia?

I have it.
Rickymouse is good with health advise too.

My doctor basically told me, like the above post, I produce too much insulin when I eat sugar, so my body gets rid of too much of it.
So, I need to eat a lot more protein, and less sugar.
I can't completely get away from sweets, but I am much more careful. I will eat nuts, jerky, things like that, before I have some ice cream. And I don't do that every day, maybe once a week.
I don't have the crashes like I used to.
They were down right scary.
Dr. also said I could end up Diabetic because of it, so that was another reason to get my eating straightened out.

And yeah, if a doctor is telling you to eat MORE sugar, he is an idiot. You need a blood glucose test. Where you go to the hospital and drink the sugar water, and they monitor your blood sugar levels.

a reply to: boredhere74


Hi boredhere74

I have had low sugar all my life. The only thing that seems to keep it in check is eating natural sugars instead of processed/refined sugars. Natural sugars such as fruit come attached with fiber. Fiber slows down the processing of sugars and helps regulate my sugar throughout the day. No spikes or ups and downs anymore.

I keep away from carbs such as bread and cakes, sweets of any kind actually (natural carbs such as veggies is ok). So, in a typical day I might eat an orange in the morning to help jump start the process, then maybe another piece of fruit mid day and later in the evening depending on if I'm doing strenuous exercise/work or not.

So far it's helped quite a bit maintaining a normal sugar level. I run, lift weights, and manage work activities just fine doing this. But everyone is different so always talk to a professional about your specific needs.

I can say that once I started eating this way and cut the refined sugars out, I didn't have any more problems with light headedness, headaches, or any of the other symptoms that come with low sugar.

But again, this is only my experience with it throughout my whole life. If this is something that you've just started experiencing yourself, probably should see someone who can help fine tune your diet for you.

Hope things go well for you!

Try looking into carnivore. It seems to help with most things.

originally posted by: boredhere74
I'm hoping some here have had this same issue. For several years I've had to deal with low to barely normal blood sugar. The doctors I've seen either tell me to just eat more sugar, or the only other option is to have part of my pancreas removed. So yes I eat more sugar than anyone I know to keep it up, and no not having any of it removed. If it's not done perfect (good luck with that), then its being on insulin from now on. Does anyone know of any other treatments?

a reply to: nugget1

I am a 1st Responder/EMT...I do not need another doctor. I am 70, in excellent health

My point to YOU...as Med Triage Specialist....is to emphasize ant number of things ingested, even avoided....can affect insulin levels.

When docs too as well advise to cut sugars? We ingest a bunch under all names, as sugar isn't 1 sugar(s).

We have many: Glucose, Dextrose, Fructose...and more. Potatoes, breads...convert to sugar (from starch).

Thank you, tho.✌️

EMT/ADV DIS LIFE SUPPORT
FEMA/Dept Homeland Security
Region 2 South, Wayne County, MI.

originally posted by: boredhere74
I'm hoping some here have had this same issue. For several years I've had to deal with low to barely normal blood sugar. The doctors I've seen either tell me to just eat more sugar, or the only other option is to have part of my pancreas removed. So yes I eat more sugar than anyone I know to keep it up, and no not having any of it removed. If it's not done perfect (good luck with that), then its being on insulin from now on. Does anyone know of any other treatments?

What does your diet consist of? Daily, weekly, etc...

originally posted by: nugget1
a reply to: boredhere74
When you eat your pancreas releases insulin to metabolize what you've consumed.

Ummm... no, your pancreas produces insulin in response to a blood sugar spike from what you have eaten.

If what you ate doesn't spike your blood sugar (or does so very little), your pancrease will secrete little to no insluin in proportion to what is needed to bring the sugar back down.

I imagine there are some genetic conditions that could result in a condition where one has abnormally low blood sugar, but I'd have to research that a bit more.

No matter what's causing it, you'll find dietary adjustments and control will bring you immense relief. Good luck!

More than likely true, but the devil is in the details.

I'd recommend making sure that you don't have any genetic abnormalities causing this, then I'd go high fat moderate protein, with as few carbs as possible (even none if you're the adventurous type). But be sure to eat enough, at least 1.5 to 2lbs of fatty red meat a day, and throw in 6-12 eggs along with it for a little extra...

a reply to: tanstaafl

Ummm... no, your pancreas produces insulin in response to a blood sugar spike from what you have eaten.

Semantics; you just phrased it better than I did.

'genetic abnormalities' would certainly be something to explore if a simple glucose tolerance test doesn't reveal anything significant. As the linked article states medications and surgeries-like a gastric sleeve- can interfere with insulin production and metabolism. That's why it's important to have a healthcare professional to access the situation and perform the tests necessary to determine the cause.

originally posted by: nugget1
a reply to: tanstaafl
Semantics; you just phrased it better than I did.

Not to be pedantic, but it isn't semantics - unless you don't understand the difference between the meanings of 'metabolize what you've consumed' - meaning, 'metabolize FOOD' - and 'regulate blood sugar'.

That's why it's important to have a healthcare professional to access the situation and perform the tests necessary to determine the cause.

The only problem with that being that the vast majority of 'health professionals' don't have a clue when it comes to nutrition and vital, optimal health.

originally posted by: tanstaafl

originally posted by: nugget1
a reply to: tanstaafl
Semantics; you just phrased it better than I did.

Not to be pedantic, but it isn't semantics - unless you don't understand the difference between the meanings of 'metabolize what you've consumed' - meaning, 'metabolize FOOD' - and 'regulate blood sugar'.

That's why it's important to have a healthcare professional to access the situation and perform the tests necessary to determine the cause.

The only problem with that being that the vast majority of 'health professionals' don't have a clue when it comes to nutrition and vital, optimal health.

Well, as I understand it insulin is regulated and released by the pancreas to aid in the metabolism of foods we eat. Your definition may vary according to how the endocrinologist explained it to you.

Sorry for the assumption; maybe you have a degree in endocrinology, in which case mea culpa.

Thank you all for the information. I think I'll try alot more protein (If I can afford it). As far as diet, no not the best, but still shouldn't go to such extremes. And a question on fiber, I can see if it slows down using it, but wouldn't that also make it even harder to keep up in the first place? And it doesn't seem to matter what I eat, carbs, protein, etc., it DROPS. I have even tried eating a piece of birthday cake then checking, yes it dropped. It did start to come back up but only after it had hit 70 first. Either the candies for low blood sugar, or regular white sugar raises it the most. And I know it shouldn't, but several tests and the same result.