Not diabetic. But can anyone else feel their sugar drop when hungry?

[anxious_thoughts]

Hello,

I'm so worried about this symptom that I've been getting a lot lately. I notice it mostly in the morning, however it has happened in the evening as well.

If I don't eat right away as soon as I get up or if I wait a while to eat, I can literally feel my blood sugar drop. I start to get anxious, feel lightheaded and dizzy, and I hurry and find something to eat because I'm worried I'll pass out.

It really bothers me and I have a worry that something isn't right. My doctor says it's pretty normal but I'm 23 now and never used to experience this within my teen years. So I'm really scared that it's a sign of something serious.

[Fishmanpa]

So I'm really scared that it's a sign of something serious.

No, it's just a sign that you need to change your eating habits :) Our bodies change as we age and thus dietary and nourishment requirements.

Positive thoughts

[anxious_thoughts]

Thanks, Fishman!

I just purchased some One a Day women's vitamins. I have never taken vitamins before but they are so important. I'm going to start. :)

[KatiePink]

I usually eat every 4 hours and if i go a while without eating i get very lightheaded and feel ill. I've been checked and all clear but for me i think it's because i have a fast metabolism well that's what the doctor said, and i'm just not used to going too long without something x

[misslove]

I get this too. If I don't eat often enough I feel yucky. My legs feeling itch is always the first sign I need to eat. It's sucky but preventable with the right diet

[Annoyed]

You're pretty much asking whether we feel like crap if we don't eat.

The answer is absolutely. I'm hungry right now. Lightheaded. Just too lazy to get up and make food.

[countrygirl]

The blood sugar dropping is what triggers the hunger pains and the feeling yuk. Its not how low it goes but how fast it drops.
I had terrible problems for many years with this happening every 3 hrs or so and could not lose weight because I just had to eat every few hours but after cutting down on carbs and totally cutting out all cake/biscuit/sugary food I now have no problem. Today I ate my lunch at 12.15pm and was still not hungry at 6pm whereas before I would have had to eat at 4pm at latest.
If I eat out where I cannot control what I am eating then it comes straight back so as fishmanpa says its purely a dietary problem and nothing else. You are eating too much carb food that spikes your blood sugar up and then it falls too fast afterwards triggering the hunger and other symptoms.

[Hypo]

Yep, I get this all the time.

[Phill2]

Hello,

I'm so worried about this symptom that I've been getting a lot lately. I notice it mostly in the morning, however it has happened in the evening as well.

If I don't eat right away as soon as I get up or if I wait a while to eat, I can literally feel my blood sugar drop. I start to get anxious, feel lightheaded and dizzy, and I hurry and find something to eat because I'm worried I'll pass out.

It really bothers me and I have a worry that something isn't right. My doctor says it's pretty normal but I'm 23 now and never used to experience this within my teen years. So I'm really scared that it's a sign of something serious.

I used to get it a lot
It's called hypoglycemia and it's easily fixed by having a low GI snack

[bartin]

Hello,

I'm so worried about this symptom that I've been getting a lot lately. I notice it mostly in the morning, however it has happened in the evening as well.

If I don't eat right away as soon as I get up or if I wait a while to eat, I can literally feel my blood sugar drop. I start to get anxious, feel lightheaded and dizzy, and I hurry and find something to eat because I'm worried I'll pass out.

It really bothers me and I have a worry that something isn't right. My doctor says it's pretty normal but I'm 23 now and never used to experience this within my teen years. So I'm really scared that it's a sign of something serious.

This is exactly what happened to me at about the same age. As a child I was used to have very regular eating schedule, always starting with breakfast. As a student, I sometimes skipped the breakfast and at about 10 am I felt so weak that I needed to leave the lecture and buy something to eat.

It's true that if you skip meals, blood glucose drops a little but not to the point that you could call it hypoglycemia. I've learned something about eating since then, and now I can go without food for the entire day if necessary and I won't feel so tired. A lot of such reactions to food can be controlled by will.

[anxious_thoughts]

Hello everyone,

I see that this is common in many people.
I'm going in tomorrow to the doctors to get a blood test done because I had a really bad anxiety attack not too long ago.

I didn't have breakfast, I woke up around 10:30am and my family and I went for lunch around 12:30. I had a piece of bread and a tangerine at 10:30 and then a couple candies around 12 cause I was worried about this blood sugar thing happening again. We got to the restaurant and I started feeling uneasy and anxious because I was hungry. It makes me feel out of it in a way but not totally. I started to feel shaky and VERY anxious because I started to worry about passing out or going unconscious because of my blood sugar dropping too low.

I finally got my food after this attack and I barely ate because at that point I wasn't very hungry. Just anxious.

Since I just finished the school semester last week I started on my diet again. I have lost 24 pounds since last summer and last week I lost two more pounds. I cut out carbs. Could that be the reason?

This anxiety feeling started again on Saturday. I was in my driving class at around 10 I started feeling that low blood sugar again. Although I just ate about an hour before. I had an apple, a slice of toast, and some turkey. I am SO scared. I don't understand what's wrong with me. My mom is making me go to the doctors tomorrow to get some blood tests done. Could this be related to Low Iron? Diabetes? I'm so worried it's diabetes.. :(

[Holds1325]

Hi,

Sorry you're worried about diabetes or any illness related to low blood sugar.

Have you got your blood sugar tested? Its very simple, they give you a sugary drink and then test it an hour or so later and you'll get your results.

I seriously had this fear of diabetes a year ago. I had shakey hands, was constantly thirsty, frequent urination etc. I was soo convinced. Anyhow it turned out my blood sugar was completely normal. Not sure what it was that caused that but it was probably poor diet.

I also used to jog alot and after a jog I'd be dying for sugar, any I could find.

Mostly its just good to keep hydrated and eat whole healthy foods. Even if someone was diabetic, its easily reversed through diet.

Either way I'm sure you're fine as what you explain sounds fairly common. :)

[anxious_thoughts]

Hello Holds1325,

Thank you so much for replying!

I'm not sure if I got my blood sugar tested but I think I've got tested for diabetes when I asked to get a full blood test mid last year. I have low iron but I don't take iron pills because they seem to give me headaches. Wondering if that might be related to it too?

I am so glad you don't have diabetes. Diets definitely have a huge impact on your blood sugar. Since I'm back on my low carb diet I'm wondering if it's because of that.

I need to stop taking too much time in-between meals and I take long to eat when I get up in the morning. I know it happens yet I seem to not do anything about it :doh:

Thanks again :)

[Holds1325]

Low iron can cause fatigue and sleepiness. Sometimes too much iron causes the same thing. Its best to just eat healthy whole foods rich in iron like beans, dark leafy greens and there are iron fortified foods like cereals and pastas.

Low carb diets usually help diabetics alot actually, but some on the low carb diet do crave sugar and carbohydrates if they are very active.

Either way an alter in diet to what makes you feel comfortable can help. Maybe introduce fast carbs from fruit such as bananas, berries and dried fruit as dried fruit contains iron too.

[anxious_thoughts]

I'm going to try to include those in my diet.

Actually, for dinner last night I had chicken, shrimp, rice, and veggies and I didn't eat anything else for the rest of the night except for a couple grapes and I felt fine. I think I really need to change my diet

Thanks again :)