Low Blood Sugar
Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) happens when you don’t eat enough or often enough. It may also happen if you exercise more than you usually do, take too much of your diabetes medicine(s), or drink alcohol. A low blood sugar reading is 70 mg/dL or below.
How do you know if you may have low blood sugar? Here are some symptoms:
- Confusion
- Dizziness or light-headedness
- Feeling anxious or weak
- Hunger
- Nervousness and shakiness
- Sleepiness
- Sweating
- Trouble speaking
You should talk to your doctor to find out the normal blood sugar level for you and tell your doctor if you are experiencing any of these symptoms.
If you have any of these symptoms, test your blood sugar with your at-home glucose meter.
What You Can Do If You Have Low Blood Sugar
As recommended by the 2009 American Diabetes Association guidelines, if you have low blood sugar, eat or drink a small amount of something that has sugar. Examples are two or three glucose tablets that you can buy at the pharmacy, or 1/2 cup of fruit juice.
As recommended by the 2009 American Diabetes Association guidelines, after 15 minutes, test your blood sugar again. If you still have low blood sugar, or you still have symptoms, have another small amount of something that has sugar. Wait 15 minutes and test again. Once your blood sugar levels have recovered, you should eat a meal or snack. This may help prevent additional low blood sugar. If you have low blood sugar several times a week, call your doctor.
If you are having symptoms but your meter shows that your blood sugar is fine, follow the steps above to recheck your blood sugar. Your meter might not be working right.
DO NOT DRIVE while you have low blood sugar or symptoms of low blood sugar.
When you test your blood sugar at home, you can use the Blood Sugar Tracker (PDF) to write down your results. Share your blood sugar control records with your doctor.