What Causes Low Blood Sugar without Diabetes

 Is nondiabetic hypoglycemia dangerous?

When the amount of sugar (glucose) in your blood falls too low, it's known as hypoglycemia, sometimes referred to as a "hypo," or low blood sugar level.

Those who have diabetes are primarily affected, particularly if they use insulin.

In most cases, you can simply manage a low blood sugar level on your own. Nevertheless, if it is not addressed right away, it can be deadly.

Signs and symptoms of low blood sugar

Everyone can experience a low blood sugar level differently. Even though your symptoms could alter over time, you'll discover how it makes you feel.

Early indications of low blood sugar levels consist of:

1. Sweating
2. Feeling exhausted out
3. Dizziness
4. Feeling peckish
5. Prickly lips
6. Feeling jittery or unsteady
7.  Hammering or rapid heartbeat (palpitations)
8. Getting easily upset, emotional, nervous, or moody
9. Becoming pale

Further symptoms, such as the following, could appear if low blood sugar is not treated:

1. Weakness
2. Visual acuity 
3. Confusion or attentional difficulties
4. Strange behavior, slurred speech, or clumsiness (like being drunk)
5. Being exhausted
6. A fit or seizure
7. Pass out or collapse

While you're asleep, you could get hypoglycemia or low blood sugar. You might experience nighttime awakenings as a result of this, as well as headaches, exhaustion, or morning sweat-soaked sheets.

How to Self-Treat a Low Blood Sugar Level

If you experience hypoglycemia symptoms if your blood sugar level is less than 4mmol/L, then do the following actions:

1. Eat a sugary beverage or snack, such as a small glass of carbonated beverage (not a diet kind), fruit juice, 4–5 jelly beans, 4–6 glucose tablets, or 2 tubes of glucose gel.
2. If your blood sugar has improved and you feel better after 10 minutes, go to step 3 instead. If there is little to no change, treat yourself once more to a sweet beverage or snack and recheck your reading 10 to 15 minutes later.
3. Depending on the timing, you might need to consume your main meal, which should contain a slow-release carbohydrate. Rather, consume a snack that has a slow-releasing carbohydrate, like a piece of toast or bread, a few biscuits, or a glass of cow's milk.
4. In most cases, if you only experience a few hypos, you can wait to seek medical attention until you feel better.

But, if you continue to experience hypos or if your symptoms diminish while your blood sugar level is low, let your diabetes care team know.

How to care for someone who is drowsy or unconscious (drowsy)

Do the following actions:

1. Place the person in the recovery position and avoid giving them anything to swallow so they won't choke.
2. Make an ambulance call If glucagon injections are not accessible, you are unsure how to administer them, or the hypo had been caused by alcohol consumption.
3. Give them an injection of glucagon right away if you have one and know how to administer it.
4. Go on to step 5 if they awaken within ten minutes of receiving the injection and are feeling better. A call for an ambulance should be made if they do not get better in 10 minutes.
5. Give them a carbohydrate snack if they are alert and able to eat and drink without danger.

If they are feeling unwell (vomiting), or if their blood sugar level lowers again, they might need to go to the hospital.

If you ever experience severe hypoglycemia that renders you unconscious, let your diabetes care team know.

How to handle someone who is experiencing a fit or seizure

1. If someone experiences a seizure or fit brought on by low blood sugar, use these instructions:
2. Be nearby to prevent them from harming themselves; place them down on something plush and take them away from any potentially hazardous areas (like a road or hot radiator).
3. Give them an injection of glucagon right away if you have access to one and know how to administer it. Give them a snack that contains carbohydrates once they've recovered.
4. If a glucagon injection is unavailable or you are unsure of how to administer it, if they haven't recovered 10 minutes after receiving a glucagon injection, or if they had alcohol before their hypo, call an ambulance.

If you've ever experienced severe hypoglycemia that led to a seizure or fit, let your diabetes care team know.

What causes low blood sugar levels?

Low blood sugar levels are typically brought on by:

1. the side effects of medication, particularly when taking excessive amounts of insulin, sulfonylureas (such as glibenclamide and gliclazide), glinides (such as repaglinide and nateglinide), or several antiviral medications to treat hepatitis C.
2. Skipping or postponing a meal
3. Not consuming enough carbohydrates at your last meal, such as bread,
4. Cereals, pasta, potatoes, and fruit
5. Exercise, even if it's vigorous or unplanned
6. Drinking alcohol

Sometimes there is no clear cause for a low blood sugar level.

Rarely, it can also occur in people without diabetes.

Preventing a low sugar level in the blood

If you:

1. Regular blood sugar checks are important, as is being aware of the signs of low blood sugar so you can act immediately.
2. To track the changes in your blood sugar levels, use a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) or flash monitor. If you do not currently have a monitor, talk to your diabetes care team about getting one.
3. Always have a sugary snack or beverage on hand, such as glucose tablets, a carton of fruit juice, or some candy. Keep your glucagon injection kit close by at all times.
4. Don't miss any meals.
5. When drinking alcohol, use caution. Limit your alcohol intake, monitor your blood sugar levels frequently, and follow up with a carbohydrate-rich snack.
6. Exercise with caution; a carbohydrate snack can help lower the chance of a hypo by reducing blood sugar spikes. Your doctor might advise you to take a reduced dose of some diabetes medications before or after engaging in vigorous activity if you take those medications.
7. If your blood sugar level falls too low while you're sleeping, eat a carbohydrate snack, such as toast (nocturnal hypoglycemia).

Discuss how to help prevent low blood sugar levels with your diabetes care team if you frequently experience them.

Undiagnosed diabetes and low blood sugar

1. Those without diabetes rarely experience low blood sugar levels.
2. Among some of the possible causes:
3. After eating, you have an excessive insulin release (called reactive hypoglycemia or postprandial hypoglycemia)
4. Malnourishment or not eating (fasting)
5. A pregnancy-related issue
6. Gastric bypass (a type of weight loss surgery)
7. Additional medical issues, such as issues with your heart, adrenal glands, liver, kidneys, or pancreas, or difficulties with your hormone levels
8. Some drugs, quinine among them (taken for malaria)

If you believe you are experiencing symptoms of low blood sugar on a regular basis, consult a doctor. To determine whether your blood sugar level is low and to try to identify its cause, they can set up some straightforward tests.