When temperatures begin rising, you could battle to maintain your blood sugars inside a wholesome vary.
However does scorching climate truly make your blood sugars go low, or does it simply really feel that approach?
This text will clarify the connection between scorching climate and low blood sugar ranges.
What causes blood sugars to go low?
Taking insulin could make blood sugar ranges go low.
If this occurs, it will possibly imply that you simply’ve taken an excessive amount of insulin for the meals you’ve eaten, otherwise you nonetheless have energetic insulin in your system earlier than exercising.
Low blood sugar may happen should you’ve forgotten to eat or should you expertise hormonal adjustments which will make your physique extra insulin delicate and vulnerable to low blood sugar ranges.
When folks with diabetes take insulin, it’s a fixed balancing act of figuring out how a lot insulin they’ll want for the actions they do and the meals they eat. This may be difficult!
Experiencing low blood sugar ranges is frequent you probably have diabetes. It’s a part of on a regular basis life.
The common particular person with kind 1 diabetes experiences two episodes of low blood sugar per week.
If you don’t take insulin exogenously on your diabetes administration, you should still expertise low blood sugar ranges from durations of fasting, consuming decrease carbohydrate meals, in depth train, and common hormonal adjustments.
Nevertheless, you’re not as vulnerable to low blood sugar ranges, and if you do expertise low blood sugar, they’re much less more likely to be extreme.
What are the signs of low blood sugar?
It’s important to know the indicators and signs of low blood sugar ranges. These embrace:
- Shakiness
- Dizziness
- Fatigue
- Confusion
- Sweating
- Speedy coronary heart charge
- Nervousness
- Starvation
- Bother concentrating
- Irritability
The signs of extreme low blood sugar embrace:
- Slurred speech
- Confused considering
- Unconsciousness
- Seizures
- Coma
- In uncommon situations, demise
Name 911 if somebody you realize is experiencing severely low blood sugar.
Administer glucagon to assist forestall coma and demise.
That is thought of a medical emergency that wants speedy consideration {and professional} medical assist.
Does summer time warmth make blood sugars go low?
It could appear to be warmth and humidity make your blood sugars crash, however that can solely be doable you probably have energetic insulin in your system.
Warmth can, nevertheless, trigger your blood vessels to dilate.
This will increase insulin absorption, resulting in decrease blood sugar ranges, and in some instances, a blood sugar crash.
It’s possible you’ll be extra more likely to expertise low blood sugar ranges should you’re exterior within the warmth and humidity with energetic insulin on board.
This may additionally occur if you enter a scorching tub, sauna, take a scorching bathe, or when your physique temperature rises from train.
Stopping low blood sugar within the warmth
There are a number of key methods to assist forestall low blood sugar episodes from taking place within the warmth.
It’s possible you’ll not be capable to forestall all low blood sugars, however utilizing the next methods might assist:
- It’s best to remain out of the warmth and humidity through the hottest instances of the day
- Once you’re in scorching water, equivalent to a scorching tub or bathe, ensure you do not need lots of insulin in your system
- Eat an additional snack earlier than going out into the warmth, ideally one thing with fats and protein to assist maintain your blood sugar degree
- Drink loads of water so that you don’t get dehydrated
- At all times double-check the quantity of insulin you’re injecting twice earlier than you’re taking it
- Depend carbohydrates so you may have a greater sense of how your snacks and meals will have an effect on your blood sugar ranges
- Put on a steady glucose monitor that may intently monitor your blood sugar ranges and you’ll deal with low blood sugar earlier than it turns into harmful
- Keep away from ingesting alcohol, which is thought to trigger low blood sugar
- Preserve an additional snack close by to deal with any emergency low blood sugar ranges and carry glucagon wherever you go
What’s dangerously low blood sugar?
Low blood sugar may be harmful at any degree. Nevertheless, some individuals are in a position to operate usually with decrease blood sugars, whereas others can not.
Something beneath 40 mg/dL is taken into account a severely-low blood sugar degree and places you at the next danger for seizures, diabetic coma, and demise.
This extreme low blood sugar requires speedy remedy with fast-acting glucose (like orange juice or sugar), or injectable glucagon if the particular person can not chew or swallow.
Name 911 after administering glucagon if the particular person has a low blood sugar beneath 40 mg/dL.
What do I do if I can’t get my blood sugar up?
The Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention (CDC) suggest treating low blood sugar ranges with the 15-15 rule.
This entails consuming or ingesting 15 grams of carbohydrates and testing your blood sugar after quarter-hour to see if it has risen.
The CDC recommends repeating the method till your blood sugar is in a wholesome vary.
When you’re in a position to eat and drink, maintain doing this till your blood sugar has risen.
Some examples of snacks which have 15 grams of carbohydrates embrace:
- 4 ounces of juice or common soda
- One tablespoon of sugar, honey, or syrup
- Three to 4 glucose tablets
- One tube of glucose gel
Nevertheless, you probably have lots of insulin in your system otherwise you’re unable to chew or swallow, that is when it is best to administer emergency injectable glucagon and name 911 for medical assist.
Can low blood sugar be lethal?
Sadly, sure.
Many individuals who lose consciousness and fall right into a diabetic coma from low blood sugar expertise mind harm and generally demise. That is uncommon, however it does occur.
This is the reason it’s essential to deal with low blood sugars promptly earlier than they turn out to be harmful.
At all times test your blood sugar earlier than, throughout, and after you eat and train—particularly throughout scorching climate and the summer time warmth.
How can I keep wholesome in the summertime warmth?
It’s doable to remain wholesome in the summertime warmth.
The next suggestions might assist:
- Keep hydrated by ingesting loads of water (being dehydrated will increase the probability that you simply’ll expertise excessive blood sugar)
- At all times put on sunscreen
- Put on a hat
- Keep within the shade
- Monitor your blood sugar ranges, particularly earlier than, throughout, and after train
- Intention to train indoors, ideally in air-conditioning
- At all times carry emergency low snacks with you
- At all times carry glucagon with you
- Put on mild, loose-fitting clothes that’s breathable
- Preserve your medicines, particularly insulin, in a cool place (by no means depart insulin in a scorching automotive)
- Preserve your diabetes provides, together with steady glucose displays (CGM) and insulin pump provides, in a cool, dry place
