I think I have low blood pressure because I feel dizzy and light-headed and my nausea has gotten worse over the last few days. It seems to help if I constantly munch on fruit. Does low blood sugar aggravate low blood pressure, or what?

Low BP and low blood sugar are not related. It sounds like you are hypoglycemic – that would cause you to feel dizzy, light-headed, and nauseous.

In the morning my blood sugar ranges from 85-100, but during the day when i have eaten, it's between 70-80?
I'm not diabetic, I just test my blood sugar twice every day to make sure everything is ok with my diet and lifestyle.

If you are not diabetic you dont need to check….or worry about your blood sugar. But, if you gotta know, your blood sugar will be slightly higher in the morning because of inactivity at night and because your body needs extra energy for the morning. Blood sugars spike at different times of the day. It is normal.

The other day, my mom was not feeling well, and so she was not thinking clearly, and got distracted while preparing her insulin. She thinks she might have actually forgot to put any insulin into the syringe! But she had pulled the syringe back enough to allow the air in, so she would have injected just air into herself. Is this dangerous? What could happen?

Air is only dangerous when it enters the vein. There's all this hype about air bubbles causing you to die. This is called an air embolus, and if an air bubble reaches your lungs you very well could die. However, the amount of air has to be a lot! Not tiny little air bubbles…
You have absolutely nothing to worry about. Notice that the air has to be injected into the vein. Insulin is always injected into the subcutaneous (fat) tissue. Even if she did inject a whole insulin syringe full of air into herself, it would have gone into her fatty tissue, not her vein, and therefore poses no threat. If she doesn't know if she took her insulin though, she needs to check her blood sugar often to make sure that her sugar doesn't get too high.

I have a friend who has started injecting Rx insulin – she claims that it causes her to gain weight. But she has not been able to describe to me how the medication works.

When she is going to eat, she checks her blood sugar for her insulin dosage…. If she is in need of insulin, does she have a healthy reason to eat? Could she only eat when her blood sugar level dropped to a normal range? Wouldn't that be healthier? And if there are circumstances when she eats with high blood sugar & insulin, isn't that a time to eat very sparingly?

It seems to me that the insulin injection converts the blood sugar to fat storage, so the when she eats more, the blood sugar level won't be dangerous for her health. But, doesn't it mean that she already ate more than she needs – that's why her blood sugar is high? Is there a correlation between insulin injecting and weight/fat gain?

Correction- insulin does not remove glucose from the urine. It removes it from the bloodstream, and redirects it to glycogen, to be stored in the tissues. It can also be stored as fat. IF her blood sugar is too high, she is eating the wrong things. She needs to watch her diet, and have a low carb profile. IF she eats low-carb, then her blood sugar will not spike like that, and the insulin will have nothing to act upon in a negative fashion.

Her blood sugar is high to begin with because of a lack of natural insulin in her body, which then needs to be supplemented by injected insulin. The job of insulin is to remove excess glucose from the bloodstream. Excess sugar in the blood is like having a thick syrup circulating around. This is bad for the body, and causes the blood pressure to go up, which can cause strokes and heart attacks. When insulin acts in a normal body, it brings the sugar level back down to normal after a meal.

She does not need to eat more. This will really make her fat. She needs to eat low carb more frequently. This will keep her blood sugar more normal.

The higher the blood sugar, the more insulin is needed, and the more the glucose will be stored as fat or glycogen.

She should never take insulin if her blood sugar level is normal or low, because insulin will still act in the same way, and drop her level to below normal. If it does go too low, she could go into a diabetic coma.

It all has to do with keeping the sugar level in balance – both with diet and with the insulin.

Does that make sense yet?

I have just read this article about how insulin brings that calories to muscles but if there is too much insulin it stores the calories at fat tissue. What are some foods that can help your body produce less of it?

Hey mate,

The best way to control your insulin levels is by having a look at the glycemic index on foods (GI) The GI is a way of measuring how quickly foods get digested and how fast glycogen (sugar) gets put into the blood stream. What you heard is semi correct. Insulin levels will only climb and distribute the glycogen to fat if there is a flood of sugar to the blood stream Choosing low GI foods such as wholemeal breads and pasta will slow the release of sugar in the bloodstream and your body will not need to flood the body with insulin. GI is kinda tricky to guess how ever. For example plain white jasmine rice is high GI which is bad where White basmati rice is low GI which is good. Both taste and look similar but have a much different effect on the body. If you google Glycemic Index you should find alot on the subject. You can also by books listing the rating on foods. On top of that most products will now have a (GI) rating somewhere on the box. Remember the lower the better. Choosing low GI foods will help you keep off weight but also it will help you stay energised for longer.

It seems as though loosing wieght as a diabetic is more of a struggle, i'm not exactly sure why but i would like to know how one could loose weight being a diabetic?

My dad's diabetic (Type II- used oral meds and insulin) and managed to lose 12 Kgs so far with my help.
I basically started him on the weight watcher programme. I made him spend him points on mostly long acting carbs (brown bread, brown rice) and lean protein (fish and skinless chicken) and eat lots of veggies. He enjoys 2 pieces of fruit a day (he likes oranges). His blood sugars are perfect, and his insulin requirement dropped a lot!

He still has more weight to lose and since the weather got better, we're pushing more exercise.

Good luck!!! It CAN be done.

New doctors have found out I was misdiagnosed with diabetes. There were problems with the glucose tolerance test. My doctor said I had hypoglycemia. He told me I needed to be treated with diabetic medication. What effect would the glimiperide have on my system? Did it make my pancreas increase my insulin levels, trying to lower my blood sugar levels ? However it worked, it really has my endocrine system all messed up. Does anyone know about this?

Glimepride (Brand name: Amaryl) is a sulfonylurea. It causes the pancreas to release insulin and is longer acting than some other sulfonylureas. Side effects include the possibility of it causing hypoglycemia and weight gain. It's important for the doctor to monitor the patient's liver functions on a regular basis, because the liver is involved with getting rid of ther drug in the system.

I am a Type 1 diabetic, that has never flown before. I am planning a trip that will happen with in the next year. Do airlines allow insulin needles on flights and how do they regulate those items?

You won't have any problems, airlines carry passengers with diabetes every day. Just make sure to have all your insulin, testing supplies, and other items together in one place (a seperate bag such as a gallon zip top bag works well) so that you can easily remove them for inspection by the TSA screener when you go through security. Here's a link to the TSA website with more info. You may need to scroll down about 3/4 of the way http://www.tsa.dhs.gov/travelers/airtravel/specialneeds/editorial_1374.shtm#3

Most airports have sharps containers in the restrooms, usually on a wall near the entrance or the trash cans, for safe disposal of used needles. Carrying a small sharps container (usually available at your local pharmacy) can be handy, especially if you'll need to give yourself an injection while on the plane. Like the above flight attendant said, please do not dispose of your needles in the seat pocket or trash cans.

It's always a good idea to carry some candy or other food to help with dips in blood sugar as not all flights offer food or even food for purchase. Carrying a list of your doctor's name(s) and contact info as well as a list of all meds and dosages can be very helpful to emergency personelle if anything should happen to you. As a traveler with a medical condition I always make sure I have a list not only with my meds, but in my purse/carry on as well.

Hi everyone.
My boss just found out her 16 year old daughter has type 1 diabetes. We were all very sad to hear the news. Apparently she will be taking medication everyday for the rest of her life and she has a strict diet to follow. What's the difference between type 1 and type 2? Also, do people with diabetes have a tendency to be thin and lose a lot of weight because of their diet? Apparently before she was diagnosed, she lost 10 pounds within a month.

Thanks!

Type one is usually diagnosed early in life, from birth to around the age of 30. There are many theories on why and what happens to the pancreas in type 1. It is thought to be a viruse that attacks it at some point. There are more cases of type 1 in states that have cold weather. These people are always insulin dependent and must inject insulin sometimes up to 6 times a day. The pancreas does not make any (or very little) insulin. In type 2, it is usually diagnosed after the age of 35, but can develop earlier. With this type there are 2 things that can happen. The pancreas can be making lots of insulin but the body is not using it correctly (this is insulin resistance) or the pancreas is not making enough insulin. People with type 2 usually have to take some type or oral meds, but some take insulin, and some take both. There are some type 2's that can control their disease with diet and exercise for many years. Both types of diabetes can be genetic. Both types are caused by malfunctions of the pancreas and are not caused by the wrong diet, or being overweight. Both types of diabetics need to get daily exercise and watch their diets.