Non-diabetic hypoglycemia

[kidvid]

I've got a new office mate. He tells me he suffers from hypoglycemia. Like this - "If I get a whole bunch of sugar in my blood my body produces a whole lot of insulin and thus my blood sugars just plummet!" He tells me this as he chomps a burger and fries and sucks down a big Mt. Dew...

From what I know, hypoglycemia can't be caused by a large infux of glucose. Am I wrong? Do non-diabetics have insulin rushes?

Joe

[Funnygrl]

What is describes is reactive hypoglycemia. And how he describes it is pretty much correct. Reactive hypoglycemia occurs when carbs are consumed. The blood sugar goes up, then the pancreas over reacts and produces too much insulin to lower it. Sometimes it can be associated with insulin resistance (ie, glucose level goes up because the body resisted insulin created to cover meal). Usually the blood glucose doesn't even go below normal limits, but the fast drop produces symptoms (relative hypoglycemia).

The diet you describe isn't really healthy for a reactive hypoglycemic. The appropriate diet would be moderate carb, with 6 meals a day- each meal including protein, and complex carbs.

I had hypoglycemia before diabetes, but not reactive hypoglycemia, rather hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemia.

[jeggeman31]

From what I know, hypoglycemia can't be caused by a large infux of glucose. Am I wrong? Do non-diabetics have insulin rushes

My wife has this problem. If she eats to much carbs, to fast she will go hypo. I have tested her before, and the meter said 25. There is a lady at work that gets the same thing.

[poodlebone]

I've known a couple of non-diabetics who, while they don't have severe reactions, will get shaky & sweaty if they haven't eaten in a long time. My brother's ex-girlfriend was like that. She'd go all day without eating and by dinner time her hands would be shaking visibly. Not sure what that would be, but not reactive hypoglycemia for sure since she hadn't eaten anything.

[Dewey]

I've known a couple of non-diabetics who, while they don't have severe reactions, will get shaky & sweaty if they haven't eaten in a long time. My brother's ex-girlfriend was like that. She'd go all day without eating and by dinner time her hands would be shaking visibly. Not sure what that would be, but not reactive hypoglycemia for sure since she hadn't eaten anything.
My mom tends to get this way if she works for long spells without breaks to snack. Seeing as how our bodies need fuels (food) to function properly, it stands to reason why people can get hypo-like symptoms if they try withholding food for too long.

That said - her condition is unrelated to mine, and she's been checked in the past (as a precautionary method), but tests always turned out perfectly. She basically has the opposite of what I have.