Reactive Hypoglycemia and Adrenaline ?

I have reactive hypoglycemia also and it causes your body to release more adrenaline, regardless of your history of exercise, as far as I can tell. Here is an excerpt from "Reactive Hypoglycemia: A Personal Journey into Managing This Condition" by K.E. Lytle.


Additionally, the body is equipped with an emergency system that responds when the blood sugar falls too low or too quickly. The adrenal glands release adrenalin, which tells the liver to release glycogen to raise the blood sugar level. The liver contains a small storage of glucose for emergencies called glycogen. However, when this adrenalin is released to raise the blood sugar, a person will experience additional host of symptoms due to the effects of the adrenalin, which not only serves to raise the blood glucose level by activating the liver to release glycogen, but also to raise the blood pressure as well. Often, the adrenal glands, like the pancreas, will be over-reactive as well in someone with reactive hypoglycemia. Therefore, someone experiencing reactive hypoglycemia, can become totally non-functional from the host of symptoms that occur from the actual low sugar level in the blood and from the effects of an abundance of adrenalin in the system.


I am also trying to figure things out still, but I hope this helps. It sounds like the only way your past history could effect your hypoglycemia now is that if you have a history of eating sugary or floury foods, your body might have developed the condition. I'm not positive though. Also, it is probably genetic. I have a lot of diabetics in my family. Do you? Information out there can be contradictory and some outright false. Good luck.

-Kristel

Thnak you for the reply....I used to have a diet very high in carbohydrates for my sport so maybe too much sugar has caused this.
I don't know of anybody in my family to suffer from diabetes, just complaints on hunger and weakness , maybe hypoglycemia symptoms. There are thyroid problems in my family but my thyroid was checked and the results were normal.
Did you have the prolonged oral glucose test? What were your results? Also how long have you had reactive hypoglycemia? Is there any way or reversing the condition to be able to eat normally again?
Thanks for your help
Cat

Hunger and weakness are definitely symptoms. My thyroid was also normal. It is a problem of the pancreas, so that makes sense. I had a 3 hour glucose test where I drank glucose and then they took my blood a number of times. I think I've had this about 10 years because that was when I had the dizziness symptoms initially. I went to a doctor and they said I just had low blood pressure. I was 15 so they probably didn't think much of it. It has negatively impacted my life in a number of ways and I wish they had caught it then. I'm still a little angry about that. I am sorry but you can't reverse the condition. I have run across information on a pill you can take but you still have to eat very carefully. It sounds controversial and like it has a lot of side effects. I would try to learn more about diet and how the condition works exactly from more research and talking with a doctor. I'm not sure if eating a lot of carbs earlier could "break" your pancreas, but it is possible. My test results were:

Fasting:87
30 min: 125
1 hr: 118
2 hr: 62
3 hr: 65

Obviously those numbers are on a different scale of measurement so I don't know how to compare. I don't really know how to read the numbers myself, just that they told me that the diagnosis was "hypoglycemia".

Hope that helped.

Your results in mmol are:
4.8
6.9
6.5
3.4
3.6
You divide by 18.
I took a 4 hour prolonged test and they measured every half hour.
Mine were:
4.7 fasting
8.1 30 mins
8.1 60 mins
9.2 90 mins
7.7 120 mins
4.5 150 mins
3.7 210 mins
4.2 240 mins


They didn't diagnose me with hypoglycemia because 3.6 is the cut off point.
Whilst writing to you I have just realised that they havn't written down my result for the 3 hour mark at 180 minutes, I am going to ring and ask for this result as this is a vital time in diagnosing reactive hypoglycemia.

How do you sleep at night? I really struggle with anxiety about eating right before I go to bed and I often wake up with symptoms. What is the best food to eat?
Also do you exercise strenuously? what happens when you do so?
Thank you

I think that "cut off point" is kind of relative and it is unfortunate that they use that sometimes to diagnose. Everyone is different and therefore would have a different cutoff point. Also, another way of looking at it is the how much your levels changed between time periods. You might drop a huge amount but not go below the cutoff point. The book "Hypoglycemia: The Classic Handbook" shows several variations and the different shapes of the graph your data points take when plotted. Sometimes after taking the glucose, your levels never rise above a certain level and that is an indicator. Maybe get a second opinion?

Sometimes if I don't eat enough before I go to sleep or I eat something not so good for me I have sweats and really weird dreams. The best thing to eat in general, for me anyway, seems to be eggs and sometimes I'll eat a hardboiled egg before I go to bed. I'm not prone to heartburn but if you are maybe that wouldn't be the best thing. Again, everyone is different so you need to find out through trial and error what is best for you. Start by eliminating white flour (and potatoes, rice, etc), sugar, alcohol, and caffeine and eat every 2 or 3 hours a small meal or snack. From there try adding different things like fruit juice. Your body will tell you how you feel.

I'm a runner, but pretty inconstant about it. I used to have trouble with eating in the morning if I was running. I couldn't eat before I ran because I would get cramps, but if I waited too long to run I would feel sick and really tired. The trick is to keep your blood sugar levels even (which is why no sugar--it spikes and then drops) so once you get into the rhythm of a good diet and most of your symptoms are gone and you feel pretty good, I think that you should be able to exercise normally.

I'm not a doctor though! I think that regardless of whether they officially diagnosed you or not there is no harm in trying to eat this way. It would be healthy for anyone to eliminate that kind of junky food and eat smaller, more frequent meals. Basically, anything close to the way it came from nature is good (not processed and sugar added) and anything in a box is generally bad. Can't go wrong with that! It may seem like you can't eat anything at first but you can experiement and find some tasty stuff you can eat. I've been making veggie burgers from barley groats and mung beans. They actually almost look at taste like burgers with the right seasonings. If you ate a lot of sugary foods though you might have a harder time adjusting. I grew up on a farm and am pretty used to eating a lot of vegetables. I miss sushi though!

I have been doing that diet for a while now, around a year, I have to eat every 2 hours otherwise i get headaches and feel sick and tired.
If I wasn't exercising I would eat as little carbs as possible ( little salads and brocolli, cauliflour with lots of protein, but I have no energy to exercise and my job requires me to exercise frequently.

So in order to be able to work:
I seem to be only able to eat rivita (bran crackers) which are just 6g of carbohydrates. I eat 1 of these with protein (ham or cheese) every 2 hours. 2 crackers make me have a stronger reaction).
I've recently been feeling worse though so measured my own glucose levels.
Before I ate just 6g of carbs with protein, my blood sugar was 4.5 (81),
then after 30 mins 4.2 (75.6)(it dropped)
At 1 hour 6.4 (115.2)
and 1 hour and a half after it was 6.7 (120.6),
but just 2 hours after it had dropped to 4.2 (75.6) again and I was feeling terrible.
This is after just 6g of carbohydrate, with normalglycemia the readings rarely go over 115 with 100g of glucose, so this to me seems way out of the ordinary.

I also recorded what happened after 2 peices of wholegrain toast with cheese and a couple of biscuits ( a usual diet ) that i used to eat. this was around 1 year ago, so may be worse now:
The recordings were:

My blood sugar went from 4.5 (81)
to 12.8 (230.4) after 45 mins
then dropped to 4.2 (75.6) after 2 and a half hours. This obviously made me feel awful so I began the hypoglycemic diet about a year ago.

But I do feel like my condition is getting worse and know that my blood glucose goes quite high and then drops suddenly, almost as if my insulin response is delayed, do you think that I am in the early stage of pre diabetes? I am going back to the endocrinologist next month. Is there an insulin test that I should have?

Thankyou very much for your help, it's good to talk to someone who has the same problem, as I have never met anybody with the condition

I really don't know that I have anything helpful to say. I don't really know the answer to your question of prediabetes. Make sure you tell the endocrinologist all of this that you just described. I just discovered Ezekial bread which is made from sprouted grain. It is better than regular flour of any kind. It comes also in tortilla wraps. Are you from the UK? I can't remember if you said that or I guessed that from something you said. If that brand isn't available maybe you could find something similar. I wouldn't eat those crackers anymore. Ham might also contain sugar. It does sound like your body is really over reacting and it is probably good you are going to a specialist.

Let me know how it goes. I can't get to a specialist right now so maybe I can learn something from you. I hope they can help you. I've enjoyed talking to you about this also. It is hard to find others with this condition or who are aware they have it. I found another person on here who has a very good diet plan that he has developed over a number of years. You can find out about it here: http://ehealthforum.com/health/topic119108 .html

Remember though that the details of any hypoglycemic diet are based on your particular response and might not work as well for you as someone else. For example, he suggested to me to not eat ham actually because of the sugar, but I'm not as sensitive to small amounts as others. It sounds like you are on the more sensitive side though. I also just thought, are you taking vitamins? Ask the specialist which ones. I take multi, iron, glucosamine, and zinc, but not specifically for hypoglycemia so maybe I should be taking something else.

keep me posted...
Kristel

I take a multi vitamin and have started taking chromium daily. Chromium is vital in sugar metabolism apparently. B vitamins are important too. I will ask the specialist when I go what vitamins are best. The nutritionist I saw who didn't really specialise in hypoglycemia told me to have B vitamins and take magnesium and zinc although in the end I was taking so many pills I couldn't keep track. All I know is that chromium is very important.
I can't tolerate flour in any form but if I begin to feel better then I may try and find that flour thanks.
I'm from the UK. What about yourself? The diet plan you sent me has given me a few ideas thanks but I can't seem to take fruit sugars or milk sugars can you?
Do you exercise regularly? I find moderate exercise is helpful but strenuous exercise knocks me out for at least 3 days and I have to follow a strict diet until symptoms settle down again. I was a competitive athlete but with my condition I am unable to train to get back to the high level due to tiredness from lack of glycogen getting to my muscles I guess. When I exercise I wake up during the night with reactions. I have to eat, this can sometimes be up to 5 times a night. It is very frustrating. Doing no exercise I can control my diet better and eat less frequently but this is no good for my job.

Thanks

I have reactive hypoglycemia and a problem with adrenaline.

The effects from an adrenaline rush are supposed to quickly fade after the need for the rush have faded. My adrenaline rush symptoms take hours to fade. My doctor told me that my body either doesn't make any or enough of the enzyme that breaks down adrenaline. He said I need to avoid all adrenaline rushes if possible or it will lead to early heart problems.

Our family has lots of weird, supposedly rare disorders and lots of autoimmune disorders. We are being checked for a mitochondrial disorder. You can check out the UMDF.ORG website and this page in particular gives the most common symptoms of mito: http://www.umdf.org/site/c.dnJEKLNqFoG/b.3 042177/k.D869/fontfont.htm

Good luct to all.

kdmigloo

Hi kdmigloo

Has your Doctor diagnosed you with an enzyme deficiency? Which enzyme would this be?
I am now seeing a gastroenterologist as they think my problem may be related to my stomach/g.i.
They think I may have an autoimmune disorder of the G.I as I am anemic, which is related possibly to a vitamin B12 deficiency as I have been found to be slightly anemic. But could this cause glucose malabsorption?
Maybe I have malabsorption of nutrients or lack intrinsic factor. I won't know until they investigate, so at the minute it's a guessing game, hopefully I will receive some results from blood tests soon.

Thanks
Cattyjane

Hi Cattyjane,

I have very similar symptoms etc to you and would be very interested to hear how you're getting on.

Hi
What symptoms do you have?

I'm still struggling with my glucose levels and stomach problems. The results from the anemia blood test done back in June didn't show any severe anemia so I have had some further tests done.
I had a synatchen test for cortisol done and had a very low reading in the morning but a normal response to the adrenaline so the endo feels my cortisol may not be the problem.
I've had an endoscopy and colonoscopy from the gastroenterologist and some further blood tests from the endocrinologist side.
I am just waiting for the results from the biopsies and blood tests. Probably be around 2 to 3 weeks. So I am no further on in knowing what the cause is.

There is a possibility I may have celiac disease but will have to wait for the results for this.....the problem is that there are no low GI, slow releasing carbohydrates that appear to be gluten free. I will really struggle with my diet if this is the case.

Do you know of any low GI gluten free foods? Oats may be contaminated and I react to rice cakes quite badly.

I find I need to drink alot more, to stop feeling like I need to eat all the time. Does anyone get this? If I listen to my body and eat, I have a bigger reaction. It's terrible craving energy all the time.

I have recently noticed that I am losing my hair, probably due to malabsorption and a few times whilst having some tests my heart rate has dropped to 40 bpm and the machine had flashed and beeped saying too low. Also my blood pressure had been consistantly low. Everything seems to be low; blood sugar, heart rate, cortisol in morning and blood pressure.

I really hope I get an answer soon, it's awful just waiting, but hopefully soon.

Cattyjane

This is quite a funny thread here to me bc I have been feeling so bad for the last year and come to find out it is reactive hypoglycemia for me as well.

Everything is low in me as well, everything you just mentioned. Let me tell you though, I feel a ton better after changing my diet over the last 8 months.

Keys to success are as follows.

1. RH can come from to much Insulin or not enough Glucagon. So get tested to find out which one is your problem.

If to much Insulin then you need to STOP eating SUGAR completely and only eat good long term Carbs. Greens and things of the such.

However, If you don't produce enough Glucagon then you need to still stop eating pure sugar and potatoes for me but other carbs in minimal amounts with meals is needed and long term carbs as well are needed.

I MUST eat every 3 to 4 hours or the Adrenaline will cut on BIG TIME!

I took the Glucose tolerance test as well but we tested Adrenaline and Noradrenaline at the end of the test.

Blood sugar results:

30 min = 161
2 hours later = 65

Adrenaline at end = 0-99 normal.....mine 150, way to high
Noradrenaline at end = 0-499 normal.....mine 750, way to high

This was when I just started to feel bad, so I know it goes much higher then that and it causes long lasting effects.

Miss one meal or delay it by 1 hour and I will have very bad feelings for days sometimes. This happens bc your body and brain are not meant to run on A and NA. When you brain is flooded with A and NA it stops producing Serotonin and this makes you tired, weak, depressed, weird thoughts and just plain nasty. When mixed with the A and NA effect of jitters, nervousness, impending doom feelings, and all the other symptoms, well it gets pretty hard to cope.

Long story short, stay away from pure and liquid sugar and never eat it by itself. Over time most will develop the ability to handle small amounts in meals, I have.

Did I mention, that I went to bed normal one night and woke up with all these symptoms the next day! Very strange, I felt as though I was dying out of nowhere. Not kool at all. Took a year to get back to half way normal function.

The most important trick of all is this!

Your body restores itself during sleep. If you cannot sleep then you will get much much worse over time. Taking valium or other drugs will not help but only make you worse. The way to sleep is to EAT!!!

Eat a full meal, right before bed and get up 4 to 6 hours into sleep and eat again, then go back to sleep!

This helps me to sleep pretty good and it continues to improve. Sleeping restores your cortisol, serotonin, and other chemicals you need to feel happy and healthy!

This condition is no joke. For me it got so far out of control at first that I couldn't do anything each day but be anxious and worried. My wife left and took my son and I lost pretty much everything important to me bc of this condition popping up over over night.

She thought I was making it up! What a joke. Live it and you will know it is very real. Not fun getting wired up every time you eat and feeling so anxious all the time. Now I bet she feels stupid but her loss.

Anyway, I wish everyone here the best. Remember, that this condition has many causes and so treatment will vary a bit from person to person.

These are the basics though:

1. Low sugar diet with long term carbs!
2. Eat every 3-4 hours, NO EXCEPTIONS!!!
3. Eat before sleep and get up to eat during sleep!
4. Take 200 - 600 milligrams MAGNESIUM GLYCINATE each day. Magnesium is a natural Beta Blocker and so it stops Adrenaline from reaching the cell. This helps a ton to fight the Adrenaline symptoms for sure. I started with 600mg each day and as it started to help I cut back to 200 each night before bed. It will help you sleep also.
5. Take Vitamin D3, just in general. Most are defecient.


I surely hope this helps some of you. I have been researching this stuff for over a year and it all helped me a ton.

I promised the Lord Jesus I would help others if he led me to a answer and cure. He did and so I hope he does the same for some of you, through me.

God Bless and I hope you all start to feel better!

Hi hypo 711

I have exactly what you have and i am really finding it a struggle to cope your advice sounds really good could we talk via email as i have never met anyone in with the same problem as me,
please write me if you would not mind answering a few questions many thanks

Thank you for your post, Hypo 711. I have hypoglycemia, and so does my grandmother, father, and sister. Between us all, we're quite the wealth of information on the topic, but I still find myself researching. I was diagnosed at age 11 when I started having dizzy spells and frequently passed out if I would go too long without eating. My diet after that experience became quite balanced, and my hypoglycemia worked itself out until I was 26. Then disaster really struck. I was going through a stressful period of my life and hardly eating. I started having horrible panic attacks, heart palpitations, bad dreams, irrational fears I've never had before, and very shaky limbs. My family doctor told me I just developed a bad case of anxiety, but it didn't seem to make sense since I've always been very laid back and have many healthy ways to help myself relax. It wasn't until one day that I realized eating a tuna sandwich with cheese and spinach made me feel entirely normal and even happy. After this realization, I spoke in length to my father about his experiences with hypoglycemia and found that my experience was nearly identical. I went back to see a couple doctors and a-ha! Of course, of course, I have hypoglycemia. That was two months ago now, and I'm feeling almost back to normal. I was sent to a therapist to talk about my troubles, which I'm still continuing because it is highly recommended to talk about your jitters and feelings until your blood/glucose levels stabilize. I still have a tiny bit of nervous thoughts (lots of "what ifs") followed by a racing heart for a minute or two between meals, but it's getting better each day. I've never been a what if or worrisome person, so my prayers were also answered when I found my answer to my suffering was hypoglycemia. It all makes sense. My father said he would get jittery and dizzy for almost two years before his blood sugars worked themselves out, but my sister and I have managed ours within a couple months. I also find that yoga works wonders for your physical and mental health! I pray for anyone suffering from hypoglycemia. You're not alone! It's a battle, but keep eating good foods and stay strong. We'll all be just fine!

HYPOGLYCEMIA AND AUTONOMIC NUROPATHY

I was always tried to keep sugar level as close as 7 mmol/L. This idea invited a tragedy for me. I never found by blood sugar below 5.5 mmol/L. Before eating I used to measure regularly.
On june11,2009 I had trouble in urinating. Doctor gave Ammoxicillin for urinary tract infection. After three days I felt palpitation. She sent me to heart specialist and took 45 days result to come. But my blood pressure falling and heart rate was increasing. Even doctor, heart specialist could not diagnose even I described the situation. I used to take Metformin, Diamicron, Lipitor and Avapro. Fortunately I stopped Avapro(blood pressure medication).Actually what happened, hypoglycemia attacked my Autonoumous nervous system and I became POTS patient. Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia syndrom(POTS) was creating reactive hypoglycemia. Overactivity of adrenal gland started. Some times blood pressure going high specially in night time, sometimes going low. After two months of hypoglycmia doctor told me to stop diamicron. From then I have been feeling better. But hypoglycemic level increased to 10 mmol/L. If suger goes below 10, I feel awkward. But unfortunately I did not feel hypoglycemic symptoms except one day before the unhappy incidence. If sugar goes above 15 mmol/L, I do not feel good also. Hence scope of eating is very limited for me. I have lot of palpitations specially between 6 t0 8 AM.

Canada does not have any specific diabetic hospital. I went 7 times in renowned hospital emergencies but still the renowned doctors (They discovered insulin- Banting Best) could not diagnose even after describing my blood pressure falling due to diabetic reason.

Knowledge is limited to specialists only and it takes 6 months to have an appointment.

Is there any way to lower hypoglycemic feeling level lower than 10?

I have lot of palpitation (is it due to Adrenalin overactivity or POTS problem.

I have blurry vision (Is it due to POTS or hypoglycemic or-adrenalin problem?)

When blood pressure increases(upto 85/160) I feel buzzing sound in the ear(Is it for POTS or adrenalin overactivity)

When standing heat rate become 75-78 (Resting 62 -67) while walking it goes to 80.(Is it autonomic or adrenaline problem)

I eat only broccoli, cauli flower, cabbage, fish, chicken ever three hours. Eat eat two Guavas(morning and evening)
I eat two indian gooseberry(Amla or Amloki) morning and evening.
Amla and Guava are giving me a better situation.

MATIN

Now I understand my problem is mainly hypoglycemia. I cannot go below 10mmol/l, I feel hypoglycemia. At 10 hypoglycemia cannot happen. It is a Pseudo hypoglycemia.
I cannot take metformin, If I eat even 1/4 quarter metformin, it suddenly drops sugar below 10 and give me hypo feeling. Now it is not going below 10, rather it is bouncing and going high. Sometimes it stress hormone is released and I feel uneasiness. Some times If I eat more Carb, sugar suddenly drops, and sugar bounces. In any way it has become hard for me to lower sugar. By bouncing it goes high. Some time carbs increases sugar but does not bounce.

I am at a loss how to reduce sugar. I have blurry views due to high sugar.

Due to dawn phenomenon sugar in the morning is high.
Can any body help me?

MATIN