Other Causes of Reactive Hypoglycemia
Ketotic Hypoglycemia
Ketotic hypoglycemia occurs almost exclusively in children 18 months to 9 years old. It usually shows up in a child who is down with a cold or flu and is not eating properly. In this case, the hypoglycemia appears after a long night without eating and the child will go into convulsions or coma.
Tests will show that in addition to a very low blood sugar level she has elevated levels of ketones. In children with ketotic hypoglycemia, carbohydrates are not metabolized properly, and the ketosis can be quite dangerous.
Other (rare) Causes of Childhood Hypoglycemia
Other instances of infant or childhood hypoglycemia can be caused by birth defects in the way they produce enzymes, or by hereditary fructose (fruit sugar) intolerance. The first would be treated with drugs and the second by avoiding all sources of fructose.
A baby born to a diabetic mother can also be hypoglycemic for the first weeks or months of its life. Being used to the low insulin levels of the mother, the baby's pancreas may be enlarged, producing too much insulin. Often, as the baby grows, the imbalance corrects itself and the child develops normally.
Hypoglycemia and Diet
By far the largest proportion of hypoglycemia sufferers fall into the category of reactive hypoglycemia caused by chronically poor diet. Most will respond well to a dietary change, and the payoff is great.
When you consider that unchecked hypoglycemia can cause an escalation of insulin resistance and that unchecked insulin resistance can result in diabetes, heart attacks and cancer, making simple changes to your diet is a no-brainer. Now that you know that you may be insulin resistant and that you can reduce its impact on your health, it just makes sense that you would want to do all you can to ensure that you will live a long, healthy life.
Still not convinced that insulin resistance is a problem for you?
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor, so please don't use these articles to diagnose yourself. They are only intended to provide information.