What is the main cause of hypoglycemia?
Hypoglycemia is most often caused by drugs taken to control diabetes. Much less common causes of hypoglycemia include other drugs, critical illness or organ failure, a reaction to carbohydrates (in susceptible people), an insulin-producing tumor in the pancreas, and some types of bariatric (weight loss) surgery.
What are three causes of hypoglycemia?
Causes can include the following:
- Medications. Taking someone else’s oral diabetes medication accidentally is a possible cause of hypoglycemia.
- Excessive alcohol drinking.
- Some critical illnesses.
- Insulin overproduction.
- Hormone deficiencies.
What causes hypoglycemia pathophysiology?
Hypoglycemia is characterized by a reduction in plasma glucose concentration to a level that may induce symptoms or signs such as altered mental status and/or sympathetic nervous system stimulation. This condition typically arises from abnormalities in the mechanisms involved in glucose homeostasis.
Which organ is most affected by hypoglycemia?
The brain is one of the first organs to be affected by hypoglycemia. Shortage of glucose in the brain, or neuroglycopenia, results in a gradual loss of cognitive functions causing slower reaction time, blurred speech, loss of consciousness, seizures, and ultimately death, as the hypoglycemia progresses.
How do you manage hypoglycemia without diabetes?
What is the treatment for non-diabetic hypoglycemia?
- Eating small meals and snacks throughout the day, eating about every three hours.
- Having a variety of foods, including protein (meat and non-meat), fatty foods, and high-fiber foods such as whole-grain bread, fruit, and vegetables.
- Limiting high-sugar foods.
What are signs of hypoglycemia?
Common symptoms of hypoglycemia include the following: trembling, clammy skin, palpitations (pounding or fast heart beats), anxiety, sweating, hunger, and. irritability.
What medications can cause hypoglycemia?
Medications that can cause hypoglycemia include: insulin glimepiride (Amaryl) glipizide (Glucotrol, Glucotrol XL) glyburide (DiaBeta, Glynase, Micronase) nateglinide (Starlix) repaglinide (Prandin)
Why do I have low blood sugar after eating?
In fasting hypoglycemia, a person gets low blood sugar if they haven’t eaten for a while. Reactive hypoglycemia is low blood sugar that occurs after eating, usually due to eating a meal high in carbohydrates. This causes the blood sugar to rise rapidly, which in some cases may stimulate excess secretion of insulin.
What causes low blood sugar without diabetes?
Causes. In those without diabetes, low blood sugar levels are usually caused by skipping meals or heavy alcohol consumption. However, certain medications can cause blood sugar levels to drop as can diseases that affect the adrenal or pituitary glands, which control hormone secretions, the Mayo Clinic reports.