People often get diabetes and hypoglycemia confused with one another, believing that they are two difference names for the same condition. In actuality, they could not be more opposite.
As we eat, our food is converted over to glucose, which is used for fuel in our cells and organs. As long as glucose levels remain balanced, the body runs efficiently. Anything over the recommended level and the body is called being pre-diabetic because you are dangerously close to developing diabetes.
Diabetes is a condition that originates when the body does not process sugar in the blood correctly. This sugar is known as glucose. When diabetes is present, the body is suffering from one of two situations: either it is not producing insulin for the body's needs or the insulin that is being produced is not adequate to meet the body's needs. In response, the amount of glucose continues to rise to dangerously high levels.
While diabetes addresses the problem of sugar levels being too high, hypoglycemia is when blood sugars are too low (hypo means low and glycemia means the sugar in our blood). There are several reasons why an individual's blood sugar levels would dip too low. One has to do with the foods that they are consuming. Not balancing out foods correctly will cause glucose to drop.
Not only will the types of foods cause hypoglycemia, but when you eat them can also create this condition. If an individual is going too long between meals, this is a prime opportunity for sugar levels to fluctuate too low. This is why it is imperative for diabetics to always include healthy snacks between their meals.
But according to statistics, the number one reason for hypoglycemia is not food-related. It is triggered by their medication.
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