What is Hypoglycemia?
What is hypoglycemia and why does it cause symptoms?
Hypoglycemia literally means Low Blood Sugar-that's the simple answer. The best understood cases of hypoglycemia occur in diabetics. In diabetes, the blood sugar is maintained through medication and keeping the level steady can be a challenge. Too much insulin, too little food or too much exercise can all trigger hypoglycemia in diabetics.
There are many people experiencing symptoms, though, and they are not diabetic. Increasing numbers of doctors and lay people are coming to believe that hypoglycemia is really quite common in the general population. Many sources estimate that 10-25% of non-diabetics are dysglycemic, meaning that they are unable to deal properly with the sugar in their diets.
Hypoglycemia / Low Blood Sugar
In the most simplistic terms, the human body runs on sugar. Everything we eat contains sugar of some kind or is converted to sugar that can be used as fuel to run the body and the brain. When your blood is low on sugar, the first part of your body to notice the problem is your brain. Your brain uses 20-60% (depending on which medical expert you ask) of the sugar your body produces, so it makes sense that a low blood sugar level would affect your brain first.
When you eat, whether protein, carbohydrates, or straight sugar, your digestive system extracts the sugars, and converts them to glycogen. The glycogen is then stored in your liver for use later. A type of sugar is also stored in your muscles and fatty tissues.