Low Blood Sugar Level and Related Health Issues

Low blood sugar level or hypoglycemia is a common problem that prevents many people from leading normal lives. The effect of hypoglycemia can vary from feeling slightly uncomfortable to seizures and coma. In some cases, low blood sugar levels causes permanent brain damage and even death. Though this medical condition is prevalent in the elderly and infants, it can affect anyone irrespective of the age and gender.

In healthy humans, the blood plasma glucose level is maintained within 70 to 150 mg/dL (milligrams per deciliter). There is no universal consensus on the definition of low blood sugar level. The lower limit can vary for different people under different circumstances. The most commonly cited lower limit for normal glucose is 60 or 70 mg/dL. Medical community, at large is still debating to identify the definite low blood sugar level that can cause damage and would warrant medical intervention.

There are no consistent patterns of symptoms associated with low blood sugar level. There are a variety of symptoms that can be adrenergic manifestations (shakiness, nervousness, palpitation, numbness, sweating etc.), glucagon manifestations (hunger, nausea, headache etc.) or neuroglycopenic manifestations (impaired judgment, personality change, slurred speech, delirium etc.) It is also observed that a good percentage of patients do not exhibit any of these symptoms. Even if symptoms occur, the manifestation in one person might not be the same from instance to instance. It can heavily depend on the rate at which the sugar level is falling. The most difficult patients are the newborns, owing to their inability to express themselves in a comprehensive manner. Parents should watch out for irritability, jitters, refusal to feed, respiratory distress, sweating, and seizures. It is in the best interest of the babys health to consult a doctor at the smallest instance of doubt.

Medical science has identified hundreds of triggers or conditions that can bring the blood sugar level to alarmingly low levels. The major parameters that the doctors depend on, to nail down the cause for low sugar levels are the circumstances and the critical sample. Circumstances can include everything from age, time of the day, the time of last meal, usage of drugs, relevant history, nutritional status, mental and physical development etc. A critical sample, coupled with insights into the circumstances can help the diagnosis and avoid the need for hospitalization. In the absence of critical sample, the diagnostic evaluation can be a painfully lengthy process.

The treatment for hypoglycemia is to immediately increase the sugar level. Once this is done, it is important to determine the cause to prevent any future occurrence of the condition. Low blood sugar level can be reversed by administering 10 to 20 grams of carbohydrates within minutes. If the person is conscious, this can be consumed as other food items. In case of patients who are unconscious, an IV and intravenous Dextrose are administered. Usually, patients are observed to fully recover within 20 to 25 minutes.

The prevention of hypoglycemia depends on the root cause. The usual methods are to lower the dosage of insulin or other medication that is thought to be of a triggering factor. A constant monitoring of the sugar level might be needed for a period of time. Unless the condition was undetected and not treated, low blood sugar level would hardly turn fatal. Even the patients with violent seizures or unconsciousness have been brought back to normalcy without any damage to the brain.