The state of hypoglycemia. What it is?

Diabetes mellitus is not dangerous in itself, but in those complications that can develop if the patient behaves wrongly. One of the most common complications is the state of hypoglycemia. What it is? It is dangerous because it develops quickly. In a matter of minutes, a patient may lose consciousness, and without prompt medical assistance, this can lead to death in a short time.

The state of hypoglycemia - what is it? This is a sharp drop in blood sugar. Most often, it happens with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, but it happens with type 2 diabetes. Danger of hypoglycemia is that the brain of a patient at that time lacks glucose, and its cells can die. A person is arranged so that glucose enters the brain directly from the blood, without the help of insulin. But with a lack of sugar, neurons can not function normally. When starving brain cells in a person, coordination of movements is disturbed, he loses the ability to clearly think and control his actions. In severe cases, the patient falls into a coma. Organic lesions begin in the brain. Therefore, timely relief of hypoglycemia is so important. What it is? The patient urgently needs to increase the sugar content in the blood, for example, eat candy, drink sugared water or enter the hormone glucagon. After a while you need to check the sugar level.

To prevent a re-lowering, it is necessary to eat something containing slow carbohydrates: an apple, a biscuit, a sandwich. It is unacceptable to use for this fatty foods - butter, ice cream, fatty meat, etc. After that it is advisable to eat cabbage or a green salad to prevent a sharp rise in sugar.

How to recognize the signs of hypoglycemia and prevent loss of consciousness?

The first stage of complication is a feeling of hunger. The patient should urgently measure the blood sugar level. If it is less than 4 mmol per liter, then you need to take action. If this is not done, the patient feels weak, sweating, trembling in the knees - this brain commanded to throw adrenaline and cortisol into the blood. There may appear pallor, drowsiness, speech and behavioral disorders. It is very important to eat something sweet at this stage, when the patient can still chew.

The second stage of hypoglycemia - what is it? It is characterized by the fact that the patient greatly pales and sweats, he doubles in the eyes, he does not understand what he is doing. Perhaps the development of delusions, the emergence of aggression. It is extremely important, while the patient is still conscious, to give him something sweet to drink, otherwise the third stage may quickly come.

The third stage is loss of consciousness and coma. The help in this case is only medicamentous, and the sooner it is rendered, the better, because the nerve cells die very quickly with a lack of glucose.

Why does hypoglycemia occur in diabetes mellitus?

1. One of the most common causes is a delay in eating. If the patient falls into a situation where he can not eat, he should always have candy or sweet water with him.
2. The attack is less likely to happen with an excess of insulin. But in patients with experience this almost does not happen.
3. Sometimes hypoglycemia causes malnutrition, when the patient eats a little carbohydrates.
4. One of the reasons is the acceptance of alcoholic beverages. Alcohol after a while greatly reduces sugar, so after drinking, you need to eat something sweet.
5. Most often, hypoglycemia develops after excessive physical exertion. In this case, too, you need to have at hand a piece of sugar, candy or sweet water.

Basically, all diabetics feel the onset of hypoglycemia, but sometimes you can skip this condition. In this case, the patient must be carried with him, except drugs and products that stop the attack, and also a card on which it is written that he is a diabetic.