What is hypoglycemia?
Hypoglycemia
simply means - Low blood sugar. Many
people mistakenly believe that if they eat something sweet and experience
symptoms of a 'sugar high' and then crash and have no energy they have
'hypoglycemia'. There is a common
belief among the general population that hypoglycemia is a diagnosis in itself,
this is not the case at all.
If you feel
that you MUST eat protein with every meal or you experience symptoms of what
may be high blood sugar and then hours later you have an energy crash, this is
not 'hypoglycemia' as a diagnosis.
Hypoglycemia means low blood sugar....not a spike in blood sugar and
then low blood sugar, it simply means low blood sugar, period. If your blood sugar spikes high enough to
cause symptoms after eating and then you experience symptoms of low blood sugar
hours later....this is called insulin resistance, not hypoglycemia. You consume something sweet and due to insulin
resistance the body is unable to get that blood glucose into the cells and you
do not feel well or as most clients describe it you have a 'sugar high.'
The body
continues to pump out more and more insulin to drive that 'energy' or glucose
into the cells and when it finally succeeds blood sugar levels drop dramatically
and you then experience fatigue or other symptoms. Despite the common idea that hypoglycemia is a diagnosis in itself....it
is not.
According to the Mayo Clinic:
" Hypoglycemia is a condition characterized by an
abnormally low level of blood sugar (glucose), your body's main energy source.
Hypoglycemia
is commonly associated with the treatment of diabetes. However, a variety of
conditions, many of them rare, can cause low blood sugar in people
without diabetes. Like fever, hypoglycemia isn't a disease itself —
it's an indicator of a health problem.
Immediate
treatment of hypoglycemia involves quick steps to get your blood sugar level
back into a normal range — about 70 to 100 milligrams per deciliter or mg/dL
(3.9 to 5.6 millimoles per liter or mmol/L) — either with high-sugar foods or
medications. Long-term treatment requires identifying and treating the
underlying cause of hypoglycemia." 1
Hypoglycemia
is not a diagnosis or a disease and in reality it only occurs in response to an
actual medical condition or from other extenuating circumstances. There
are cases where people feel unwell when they haven't eaten in 2-3 hours, there
are also cases of individuals who do not feel well when first adopting a plant
based diet lower in protein. Neither of
these cases is a disease of 'hypoglycemia.'
There are three basic reasons
individuals believe they have 'Hypoglycemia':
1. Individuals with a high metabolism
due to high activity levels or simply due to genetics.
2. Individuals who have an accumulation
of amino acids in the basement membrane between the capillaries and the cells which
leads to feeling ill when protein consumption is not maintained at a high
level. This situation is easily remedied
and if not corrected health problems will eventually surface later in life.
3. Individuals who actually have insulin
resistance.
The Mayo Clinic details the causes
associated with hypoglycemia:
· Medications
· Excessive Alcohol consumption
· Severe hepatitis
· Anorexia Nervosa which depletes the
body's glycogen reserves diminishing its ability to perform gluconeogenesis in
order to maintain normal blood sugar levels when carbohydrate consumption or
food consumption in general is low.
· Kidney disorders
· Gastric bypass surgery patients are at risk
· Insulinoma
· nesidioblastosis
· Endocrine disorders of
the adrenal glands or Pituitary gland
Many
of my clients have told me they have been diagnosed with hypoglycemia by their doctor. When I asked if their doctor ordered a blood
glucose test to determine if in fact they did have low blood sugar levels, none
of them had. A few clients who claimed
to have 'hypoglycemia' were actually suffering from insulin resistance or pre-diabetes. It is unfortunate that so many people are
unaware of why they feel this way. The internet is littered with bogus articles
touting 'diets for hypoglycemia' and a host of other false information about
hypoglycemia as if it were a diagnosis that needs treatment in itself.
Are you REALLY experiencing symptoms
of Hypoglycemia?
Please take
note of the symptoms of hypoglycemia below...as most people who think they are
experiencing hypoglycemia are not.
·
Confusion,
abnormal behavior or both, such as the inability to complete routine tasks
·
Visual
disturbances, such as double vision and blurred vision
·
Seizures,
though uncommon
·
Loss of
consciousness, though uncommon
Hypoglycemia may also cause these other signs
and symptoms:
·
Heart
palpitations
·
Shakiness
·
Anxiety
·
Sweating
·
Hunger
·
Tingling
sensation around the mouth
If you are
merely feeling hunger and fatigue and nothing else, this really isn't a true hypoglycemic
situation. If in fact you are experiencing
a true episode of hypoglycemia, if it is not rectified it can have real,
serious consequences such as loss of consciousness.
If you feel you need to eat protein
with every meal in order to feel well....you are NOT well!
The first
thing to consider in an individual who feels they need protein with every meal
and who feels unwell when they consume a diet 'lower in protein' it has nothing
to do with low blood sugar. It is an
accumulation of excess amino acids in the basement membrane of the capillaries
which prevents adequate oxygenation of cells and also inhibits wastes from
exiting the cells. As soon as protein
consumption drops and these excess amino acids begin to clear from the system
the individual does not feel well.
Symptoms may include: fatigue, feeling groggy, foggy headed, difficulty
concentrating, weakness....the symptoms vary widely from person to person.
Some people
term this, "detox." I
personally don't like the current idea of 'Detoxing' as it is widely used as an
excuse for everything one experiences when making a dietary change and it also
causes some people to suffer needlessly and then give up on the diet because
the 'detox' symptoms never resolved.
Well they didn't resolve because it wasn't 'detox' in the first place.
In this case
however, the symptoms will resolve as the body gets rid of the excess amino
acid accumulation and normalizes. If the
symptoms do not resolve there is probably another contributing factor and you
should consult a knowledgeable practitioner who will not merely try to push
'protein' foods on you but you will truly get to the bottom of your issues.
"The
Wendt doctrine, a result of thirty years of research by a family of German
physician researchers, connects excess protein consumption to some forms of
chronic degenerative disease. The Wendts were able to prove with electron
microscope pictures, that excess protein clogs the basement membrane, which is
a filtering membrane located between capillaries and cells. This membrane helps
regulate the flow of nutrients and waste products between capillaries, cells,
and fluid in the tissues they penetrate. The more excess protein there is in
the diet, the more protein is lodged in the basement membrane. This makes it
more difficult for proteins, other nutrients, including oxygen, to enter the
cells and for waste to exit. Eventually, the basement membrane becomes so
clogged with excess protein that the cells on the inside of the capillary walls
begin to store and secrete the excess protein in insoluble forms that
accumulate on the inside of the capillaries and arteriole walls, causing
atherosclerosis, hypertension, and what the Wendts term capillarogenic tissue
degeneration. This system-wide condition produces cellular malnutrition. The
Wendts found that this whole process could be reversed by stopping the intake
of all animal protein for one to three months and by eating a low protein diet." 2
Unfortunately individuals who are more prone
to experiencing this feel terrible when their protein consumption drops. They believe somehow that they 'need' more
protein in their diet for energy.
Interestingly protein is the last place the body goes for energy but
that is another discussion for another day.
I have to eat protein with every meal
or I get a 'Sugar high'.......
Photo by DraikJack
You do not
have 'hypoglycemia, you actually have insulin resistance or pre-diabetes. Any individual whose body CANNOT tolerate
healthy whole foods that fuel the body with its optimal source of fuel, as
stated by the Mayo Clinic above....blood glucose, you have a problem, this is
not normal!
The problem
in this case is an accumulation of intramyocellular lipids which lead to
insulin resistance. Individuals who are
predisposed to diabetes generally have fewer mitochondria in the cell which
leads to the accumulation of these lipids in the muscle cells resulting in insulin
resistance.
This
mechanism has been known for a long time, A research study published in
Diabetes in 1999 concluded: " These
results indicate that increased IMCL represents an early abnormality in
the pathogenesis of insulin resistance and suggest that increased IMCL may
contribute to the defective glucose uptake in skeletal muscle in
insulin-resistant subjects."
Researchers
at Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge found that a high fat
diet of about 50% of calories from fat caused significantly more intra-myocellular
lipid accumulation.
In 2012
researchers still implicate IMCL accumulation with insulin resistance but we
have come even farther in our understanding of impaired lipid metabolism and
insulin resistance. 3
You don't
need to avoid carbohydrates, you need to get to the root of the problem. Your body was designed to have blood glucose
[blood sugar] if you don't have blood sugar....you DIE! Blood sugar is NOT a villain, it is your
body's primary source of fuel.
I am not
going to go into all the details about insulin resistance and diabetes in this
post because we are talking about hypoglycemia.
If you are experiencing the above symptoms you may want to look into
insulin resistance or pre-diabetes....if you aren't diagnosed yet you are well
on your way.
Herbs that
may help with Balancing blood sugar levels:
· Nopal cactus
· Cinnamon4
· Licorice
These are a few options for assisting those with a tendency
toward type II diabetes. These herbs
will not prevent or treat insulin resistance or diabetes, they merely assist in
blood sugar balance along with a healthy diet, exercise in those predisposed to
blood sugar imbalances.
***Warning: These herbs do not control diabetes or
insulin resistance and without dietary changes and other interventions these
herbs will NOT cure your situation so please do not use them as a sole form of
treatment. They can be used to as a
compliment but without dietary change your condition will not change.
Sometimes it
is merely a fast metabolism
There are
those rare individuals, who have been blessed with a fast metabolism! These individuals truly do feel unwell if
they haven't eaten in 2-3 hours. They
begin to feel fatigue, cannot think clearly and may have true symptoms of low
blood sugar.
This is
probably more rare than the other reasons people believe they have
'hypoglycemia' but I have seen it and there are people who really do have a
need to eat every 2-3 hours.
What can I do if I have a fast
metabolism?
Well that is
an easy fix....EAT! Consider yourself
lucky and eat every 2-3 hours. As long
as you are maintaining a healthy weight eat as much and as often as you need
to. There are a few things to consider
though if you truly are struggling with more severe symptoms of hypoglycemia if
you haven't eaten in a few hours.
There is the
possibility of Type I diabetes as well in this case so if you are experiencing
significant symptoms it is important to seek medical attention.
There are a
couple warning signs though to watch out for and those are the symptoms of
hyperthyroidism. You may be perfectly
healthy and simply have a high metabolism and that is wonderful but it is
always a good idea to make sure you do not have any signs or symptoms of a
disease that may need the expertise of a health practitioner. If you notice these symptoms are similar to
those of hypoglycemia.
Hyperthyroidism
·
Sudden
weight loss, even when your appetite and the amount and type of food you eat
remain the same or even increase
·
Rapid
heartbeat (tachycardia) — commonly more than 100 beats a minute — irregular
heartbeat (arrhythmia) or pounding of your heart (palpitations)
·
Increased
appetite
·
Nervousness,
anxiety and irritability
·
Tremor
— usually a fine trembling in your hands and fingers
·
Sweating
·
Changes
in menstrual patterns
·
Increased
sensitivity to heat
·
Changes
in bowel patterns, especially more frequent bowel movements
·
An
enlarged thyroid gland (goiter), which may appear as a swelling at the base of
your neck
·
Fatigue,
muscle weakness
·
Difficulty
sleeping
·
Skin
thinning
·
Fine,
brittle hair
If you are
not experiencing any of these symptoms but merely have the signs of
hypoglycemia when you don't eat often...by all means....just EAT and enjoy it
for those of us who can only dream of having your problem.
It is
important to realize that hypoglycemia is not a diagnosis in itself and if you
are not feeling well and have to micromanage your macronutrients in order to
avoid feeling unwell it is important to find a practitioner who can help you
regain your health rather than try to manipulate the diet to simply avoid
triggering symptoms of an underlying problem.
References:
1. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hypoglycemia/basics/definition/con-20021103 [accessed 4/30/14]
2. http://www.creationsmagazine.com/articles/C108/Cousens.html
3.
http://www.cell.com/cell/abstract/S0092-8674(12)00217-6
4. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2362.2006.01629.x/abstract?deniedAccessCustomisedMessage=&userIsAuthenticated=false
http://japha.org/article.aspx?articleid=1034161
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