Top Ten Signs That You May Have Reactive Hypoglycemia

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Do you have an array of vague, seemingly unrelated symptoms that you think might be reactive hypoglycemia? According to the Merck Medical Manual, Hypoglycemia is generally considered to be blood glucose levels of below 50 mg/dL. Read the following list of symptoms; if this sounds like you, you may have this condition.This list isn’t exhaustive, and just because you have some (or all) of the ailments on this list doesn’t necessarily mean you have reactive hypoglycemia. A diagnosis for this disorder is like a puzzle: the more pieces you have, the better armed you are to see the big picture of what might be causing your health issued.

Do you have a “food allergy” or frequent stomach upsets but you can’t pinpoint the cause?

One of the first signs that your blood sugar is dropping can be feeling sick to your stomach. But a drop in blood sugar isn’t visible. Perhaps it’s lactose intolerance, you think. So you avoid pizza and lasagna. Or it’s a sensitivity to gluten, so you stop eating bread. But you still get ill, and blame food poisoning, or “bad food” or “stress”. Whatever food is making you feel “ill,” you’ve been unable to adjust your diet to feel better.
Do your hands shake after meals? Two hours after meals? Three hours after meals?

Trembling, shaking, cold hands/feet, and a cold nose can all be signs of low blood sugar. My hands and feet would tremble 2 1/2 hours after high carb meals, like I was naked in Antarctica. I had no idea that a glass of apple juice and a piece of toast would stop the shakes in ten minutes.
Do you seem unusually clumsy when compared to everyone else?

Your clumsiness or “butterfingers” may be more than you’re just uncoordinated: people with reactive hypoglycemia are also often clumsy. There’s a whole article I wrote about clumsiness and reactive hypoglycemia, and you can find it here. My son, Leo, went to the emergency room sixteen times for various falls, broken bones, and even a fall with a seizure before he was diagnosed with reactive hypoglycemia.
Do you often feel faint and have to sit down?

Feeling dizzy or faint, especially if you feel better after drinking juice, is a sign of low blood sugar. I used to get dizzy in grocery stores, and I would drink juice to feel better. My son complained of feeling like he would pass out frequently (and often did). I have passed out on many occassions: getting my blood drawn, out at a dance club…before realizing that the “fainting” occured hours after a meal.
Do you crave sugary foods like chocolate cake, candy, cookies, or sodas?

Most people like a slice of cake, but craving sweet foods might be a sign you have reactive hypoglycemia. Before my diagnosis, I used to crave sugar-loaded foods like chocolate cake from my local coffee shop, smothered with sugary frosting. I would swear that the cake would lift my mood. And the truth was…it did. It elevated my blood sugar levels and made me feel better. The trouble is with cake and refined sugar, is that mood elevation was only temporary, and soon I would be on a “down” and craving sweets again.
Do you suffer from sweaty hands?

Sure, there are many reasons for sweaty hands, but that could also the first sign of blood sugar levels dropping for me. My husband always knows it’s time for me to have a snack when he holds my hand and it’s cold and clammy.
Have you had panic attacks, or have you been diagnosed with a panic disorder?

Those panic attacks might not be due to stress at work. I have suffered from panic attacks for years, and so has my brother. We thought it was a family disorder. I even went on medication (Buspar) for a year. But I never could shake the feeling of feeling frequently nervous and shaky. I’d have heart palpitations and stomach churning and trouble breathing…all symptoms of a low blood sugar crash. If you have had panic attacks and are an anxious person, think about when these attacks happen. If they tend to occur after meals (1-3 hours after), and you feel that perhaps the diagnosis doesn’t quite “fit”, you may have this disorder.
Do you get hungry to the point of feeling ill?

Does your hunger consume you? If you often get a feeling of starvation, that is, you have to eat now or you’re going to die…this could be a sign of a blood sugar problem, especially if you find yourself craving carbs.
Do you often have trouble thinking straight?

Mental confusion often occurs with low blood sugar. In fact, the lower blood sugar gets, the more the brain struggles to operate. My family has always called me “scatterbrained” and “forgetful.” I forgot birthdays. I forgot where I put my car keys. I forgot names. As I reached my forties, I would joke it was “early Alzheimers.” Once I was diagnosed with reactive hypoglycemia and began to treat my disorder, my “confused” symptoms diminished.
Do you have unexplained mood swings?

Mood swings go hand in hand with uncontrolled reactive hypoglycemia. Do you have mood swings that cannot be explained by pre-menstrual syndrome, bipolar disorder, or other ailment? Does your stress level not seem to be commensurate with your ability to throw dishes, slam doors, and burst into tears?

This is only a partial list of symptoms. People with reactive hypoglycemia have listed up to an astonishing sixty different symptoms. It takes only a little time and cash to be tested (actually, you can do it for free if you follow the advice in my article How to Get Diagnosed With Reactive Hypoglycemia, and send off for a “sample” blood glucose monitor). What do you have to lose?

Signs and symptoms of postprandial hypoglycemia

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19 Comments on “Top Ten Signs That You May Have Reactive Hypoglycemia”

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4 Emily said at 11:33 pm on June 28th, 2009:
I think i may have this
But these symtoms don’t exactly match.
Arent there different kinds of hypoglycemia?
I think i may have a differnt type then you.
I do get very hungy and shaking and get weird mood swings but i only start shaking if i’ve been excersising too much and dont get enough to eat.
I’m not sure how i got hypoglycemia.
I don’t drink or do drugs and i’ve never had diabetes? How else could i have gotten this?
This has been happening all my life, even since i was little.
Until today i never knew what was wrong with me.
So im just wondering how i got it???
5 Steph Kenrose said at 11:47 am on June 30th, 2009:
Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) can have different causes, and different ways of presenting. Some people gt all the symptoms, some people get only a few of the symptoms. If you think you might have it, you should consider getting your blood sugar tested. As for how you got it, have you seen my article on causes of Tietze’s syndrome? There’s many reasons why you might have it, from dietary to hereditary. Good luck!
6 Carl said at 11:22 am on July 1st, 2009:
Someone dear to me seems to hafe these symptoms, but when we went to the Doctor’s for a full blood test of all blood components, her sugar levels were normal. Could she be hypoglycemic anyway?
7 Steph Kenrose said at 12:42 pm on July 1st, 2009:
Carl…hypoglycemia is low blood sugar (technically 60mg/dL and below) but symptoms (shakes, sweats etc) can occur below 80mg/dL for some people. I’m not a doc, and without seeing her actual results I wouldn’t even want to hazard a guess if she is hypoglycemic or not. There are other disorders that can cause the same symptoms (adrenal fatigue for example). I’d recommend going to an endocrinologist for a 2nd opinion. Good luck Steph
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9 Anna said at 10:46 am on September 21st, 2009:
Hey Steph.
Love the website, I find it really helpful.

I’m 15 and I find that while I don’t seem to have symptoms as severe as yours, I still suffer incredible fatigue, moodiness and shakes after not eating for around 3 hours, as well as panic attacks. However I can eat sweets or drink coffee and not have crash much worse than I would if replacing sugary snacks with nuts or seeds for example.
I know you have to eat every two hours and I was wondering if your symptoms got worse as you aged?

Thanks for everything you do

xx
10 Steph Kenrose said at 12:04 pm on September 21st, 2009:
Yes, my symptoms worsened as I age. My endocrinologist told me that for some people, they “grow out of it”, others get worse. I’m one of the unlucky ones, lol.
11 Anna said at 1:44 pm on September 21st, 2009:
Ah that really sucks, sorry to hear it :\ I know it’s awful for me now and I’m not nearly as bad as you seem to be. However I think it is easier to control when you’re in charge of what you eat…but my mother won’t let me loose with anything but a microwave xD
Thanks for the reply.
12 Steph Kenrose said at 1:57 pm on September 21st, 2009:
It’s fine as long as I eat every two hours

I’m also going to be trying a raw food diet soon, because I’ve heard all kinds of good things about it. (Now that wouldn’t require even a microwave )
13 lu said at 11:48 pm on October 6th, 2009:
My sugar only goes down into the 80s. I am going to the best endo. in the chicago area. and he says because my numbers are normal that I’m not hypo or diabetic. But I know I have reactive hypogly. and have been dealing with it for years. I have all the symptoms. I read the book written by the foremoost authority on R.H. Eating every few hrs helps. I eat a lot of protien. I try to stay away from bad carbs, There can be causes and no one will look into it. My son has it . My brother has it. and I think my mother had it and did’nt know. she had the outbursts, her hands shook , she hid sweets in her room. i wish I could get rid of it . It consumes my life sometimes. I cant think straight, I cant talk to someone very long, I cant be on th computer too long, before I get dizzy and confused. Is there anything that could be done?
14 Steph Kenrose said at 10:29 am on October 7th, 2009:
Lu,

I completely changed my diet and eat basically vegan with no artificial junk. I eat every 2 hours. As long as I adhere to my exercise and diet regime I keep RH at bay. I put everything I know about it in the book, but there’s a lot of info here on the site too.

Have you considered Adrenergic Postprandial Syndrome as a possible cause of your symptoms?

I wish you the best of luck,
Stephanie
15 Joan said at 4:05 pm on October 19th, 2009:
I recently walked a half marathon — felt really ill after – was pale had to lay down. Last check up my sugar was normal – is it possible to get reactive hypoglycemia from extensive exercise?
16 Steph Kenrose said at 7:35 am on October 20th, 2009:
Joan,

My RH gets worse after I exercise (I swim and do Tae Kwon Do). Did you check your blood sugar when you had the symptoms? Did eating/drinking alleviate the symptoms? That’s probably the only way to tell,

Stephanie
17 Lu said at 10:37 am on October 20th, 2009:
I know all about what to eat but have never gone completely vegan. I haven’t been exercising lately and have gained more weight. Yes as long as I eat every two hrs and stay ahead of it I can keep the symptoms away.
i have thought about Ardenal Fatigue. I’ve had a stressful life and sometimes wake in the middle of the night with the feeling of an adrenalin rush. and I know stress causes more cortisol and that causes belly fat which I have a lot of.
I want to bring this up to the Dr. but sometime they act like its all in your head. Well its not , just ask my husband who has seen all the symptoms first hand.Sometimes I just give up and eat sweets and junk but have to eat a lot of protein afterwards to counter the carbs. I have told alot of Drs and none have really helped. I hate it!
18 Nicho said at 9:15 pm on October 29th, 2009:
I am 28, 6 foot, muscled, 168lbs, and have a very fast metabolism. I can eat as much as I want of whatever I want and still loose weight. The more I watch what I eat and cut out sugars the worse I have gotten. I get low blood sugar 1-2 hours after every meal. I get confused, angry, disoriented, and fall asleep without fail. The more often I eat, the more I have to eat, and the worse the symptoms get. The most visual effect is chronic acne from changes in my blood sugar. When I stopped eating sugar after 10 days I felt like I was dying, with extreme adominal pain. Is their any hope for me?
19 Steph Kenrose said at 6:20 am on October 30th, 2009:
Nicho,
Without knowing the rest of your diet, it’s hard to say. Have you seen a knowledgeable nutritionist? You can also try swapping out the sugar for agave syrup or evaporated can juice. Both of those provide the same amount of carbs yet tend to be easier on blood sugar levels.
Please take a look around the site–there’s a ton of tips. I hope you find something that helps
Stephanie