What Are The Effects Of Fatigue On Diabetes
When someone becomes fatigued, it can lead to a never ending cycle. First, because of the fatigue, they become tired and dont want to do anything. That leads to lack of exercise and poor dietary choices. These choices make them depressed, which in turn makes the fatigue even worse. This cycle continues and eventually the person begins to have complications from diabetes because their blood sugars are not under control.
Fatigue can cause someone to lose motivation to take care of themselves. They stop checking their blood sugar like they should or do things for themselves that they know they should because they are just too tired. Insulin dosages are skipped or not given accurately because of the time and energy that it takes to do it correctly. It is very important for all individuals with fatigue to find a solution, but it is even more important for those people with diabetes because of the risk of complications due to non-compliance.
Does Lemon Help With Dizziness
Lemon: Lemon is high in vitamin C and helps to boost your immune system and give the body fluids that help you maintain your energy. You can mix 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice with a pinch of ground black pepper in a cup of water. Add a little salt and drink 3 times daily until your dizziness improves.
Parents Of Children With Diabetes
If your child has diabetes and shows symptoms of hypoglycemia, itâs important to check their blood glucose level with a glucometer. If this is not possible, it is best to treat them as if they have hypoglycemia by giving them carbohydrates to prevent symptoms from getting worse.
Your child should have a safety plan in place for when they are not in your care, such as when they are at school, friends homes, or daycare. The plan should include whom they should talk to if they are not feeling well.
Talking to your child about their diabetes and the symptoms to be aware of helps keep them safe. When your child is aware that how theyre feeling is related to their blood sugar levels and diabetes management, they can learn to both self-identify and verbalize or signal to their parents when they need treatment.
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Common Diabetes Fatigue Questions Answered
Before we jump into ways to boost energy for diabetes, letâs answer some common questions to set the stage for the most important factor in boosting energy levels when you have diabetes: blood sugar control.
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How Do You Reverse Hypoglycemia
If you have symptoms of hypoglycemia, do the following: Eat or drink 15 to 20 grams of fast-acting carbohydrates. These are sugary foods without protein or fat that are easily converted to sugar in the body. Try glucose tablets or gel, fruit juice, regular not diet soft drinks, honey, and sugary candy.
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How To Treat Someone Whos Having A Seizure Or Fit
Follow these steps if someone has a seizure or fit caused by a low blood sugar level:
Tell your diabetes care team if you ever have a severe hypo that caused you to have a seizure or fit.
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How Do I Prevent Hyperglycemia
- Exercise to help lower blood sugar. Work with your healthcare provider to make a daily activity plan.
- Follow your meal plan if you have one. Learn how carbohydrates impact your blood sugar, and work with your diabetes care team to find the best meal plan for you.
- Maintain a healthy weight.
- Limit drinking alcohol. Alcohol can raise blood sugar levels, but can also cause dangerously low blood sugar levels. Work with your provider to determine how much is safe to drink.
Last reviewed by a Cleveland Clinic medical professional on 02/11/2020.
References
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High Blood Sugar: Causes Complications And How To Lower Blood Sugar
Your body breaks down glucose for energy using the insulin produced by the pancreas. This is required for our bodies to function. Illness can have an impact on the way our pancreas functions. Read this to learn how high blood sugar can affect your health.
7 minute read
Your body requires energy to function, and this energy comes from food. Specifically, your body breaks down glucose for energy using the insulin produced by the pancreas.
Type 1 and type 2 diabetes cause impairment to this breakdown of sugar in the body, causing blood glucose levels to become irregular. When glucose is not broken down into energy, it can build up in the bloodstream and then becomes a health problem.
Your pancreas produces insulin, which breaks down glucose. With type 1 diabetes, the cells that produce insulin are mistakenly attacked by your immune system. As a result of this autoimmune condition, blood sugar levels can become dangerously high without intervention.
Type 2 diabetes occurs when your body no longer responds to insulin as well as it should and then also causes glucose to accumulate in the blood.
Managing Tiredness And High Blood Sugar After Meals
If tiredness is accompanied by high blood glucose levels after meals, it can indicate one or more of the following:
- The carbohydrate you are eating is too quick acting for you medication to cope with
- You are eating too much carbohydrate for your medication/dosage
- Your medication/dosage is not strong enough
You should only change your medication dosage if your doctor has approved you to.
Putting on weight is a common indication that ones insulin levels are too high. People who are overweight and experiencing tiredness as a result of high blood glucose levels may be able to combat tiredness by reducing their carbohydrate intake.
A doctor or dietitian should be able to help you with how to reduce your blood glucose levels whilst achieving a healthy weight.
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The Afternoon Energy Crash
The survey results at the top of the page show that most common time people withadrenal fatigue experience hypoglycemia symptoms is in the afternoon.
Figure 1. Sample Saliva Test
For those that have taken a saliva adrenal fatigue test,they often find that they have low cortisol in the afternoon or evening.
Figure 1 shows a sample saliva test. Note the low cortisol at noon.
Some people have different saliva test results. But Figure 1 results are common.
This may explain why hypoglycemia is often worse in the afternoon. The adrenal glands seem more prone to runningout of gas in the afternoon, so they would be less able to respond to a drop blood sugar.
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Anxiety Disorders As A Cause Of Dizziness Or Lightheadedness
One of the more obvious causes of constant lightheadedness is related to dealing with chronic stress. Our brain is programmed to be able to only focus for about one hour after spending this time in deep concentration, it starts to stray. Due to the demanding nature of jobs in modern society, we are forced to perform in high-stress environments for hours a day in order to fulfill all our duties. This type of intense concentration can surely lead to dizziness and lightheadedness like you, your brain will be working overtime. Ways to reduce stress, like yoga and breathing exercises, have been proven to be a great way to reduce the level of stress and improve your mental health. On the other hand, if your job constantly brings you significant stress, exploring the option of moving to a less stressful occupation, or taking a sabbatical, could also be a step to take. Removing your source of stress permanently is one of the best ways to cope with stress, after all.
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Can High Sugar Make You Tired
Individuals with type 1 or 2 diabetes are usually alert of the signs that follow high blood glucose. For a person with a recent diagnosis of diabetes or an individual with standard or prediabetic levels, on the other hand, those signs might not be as noticeable. It might be hard to distinguish between the signs of high blood glucose and other illnesses as few may be nonspecific. One of these nonspecific signs of high glucose levels in the blood that diabetics often experience is fatigue. Here in this article, you can read about the correlation between blood sugar and exhaustion and does diabetes causes fatigue.
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Natural Treatment For High Blood Pressure
Preventing high blood pressure is key, however, there are natural treatment options available that could help to reduce your blood pressure.
Managing stress with meditation or deep-breathing exercises Quit smoking Eating more food rich in calcium and magnesium
Eating foods rich in potassium can help
In Addition to the options listed above, there are several natural supplements that may also help to lower blood pressure or prevent it from elevating, to begin with.
Berberine
High blood sugar levels are caused when the following factors are present for a long time:
- Long meal gap or irregular meal timings or a large meal
- Intake of high-carbohydrate or high-fat diet or outside-processed foods or alcohol
- Lack of physical activity
- Overweight or obesity
If youre a non-diabetic, you can work on your health and prevent an increase in blood sugar levels. To know how, read our blog, How to prevent diabetes Methods that actually work
Now lets move on to the other cause of extreme tiredness in a diabetic
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How To Treat Someone Whos Unconscious Or Very Sleepy
Follow these steps:
They may need to go to hospital if theyre being sick , or their blood sugar level drops again.
Tell your diabetes care team if you ever have a severe hypo that caused you to lose consciousness.
Complications Of High Blood Sugar
Diabetes is one of the main causes of high blood sugar levels, but there are other causes that can impact your blood glucose and your risk for hyperglycemia.
Hyperglycemia is the medical term for high blood sugar levels. You can have temporary spikes in blood sugar after eating a large meal or as a result of medication side effects. Chronically elevated blood sugar levels are dangerous and common in those with diabetes. Without treatment, you run the risk of a diabetic coma.
Ketoacidosis is a condition that develops when elevated blood glucose levels go untreated. Without glucose to use for fuel, your body begins to burn fat instead and produces ketones. When there are too many ketones in the blood, it will turn acidic, which can very quickly lead to ketoacidosis, a diabetic coma, and even death.
People without diabetes can develop a similar condition known as ketosis, but they can tolerate a certain level of ketones because inulin is still effectively working.
Diabetic hyperosmolar syndrome is another serious complication of high blood sugar. This is more common among individuals with type 2 diabetes and is triggered by an infection or illness.
As a result of the high blood sugar, your body tries to push out the excess glucose by passing it through your urine. Without treatment, this can result in life-threatening dehydration so prompt medical attention would be necessary.
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How Does Poor Sleep Affect Blood Sugar Levels
Just as diabetes can cause sleep problems, sleep problems also appear to play a role in diabetes. Getting poor sleep or less restorative slow-wave sleep has been linked to high blood sugar levels in people with diabetes and prediabetes. However, its not entirely clear whether one causes the other or whether more variables are at work. Researchers believe that sleep restriction may affect blood sugar levels due to its effects on insulin, cortisol, and oxidative stress.
One-quarter of people with diabetes report sleeping less than six hours or more than eight hours a night, which puts them at a higher risk of having elevated blood sugar. In addition to raising blood sugar levels in people who already have diabetes, sleep deprivation also raises the risk of developing insulin resistance in the first place. This link becomes apparent as early as childhood.
Studies have also found that later or irregular sleeping schedules are correlated with higher blood sugar, even in non-diabetic people. However, there may be other variables that explain this, such as the fact that people with irregular sleeping schedules are more likely to follow an erratic diet.
Sleep deprivation raises levels of ghrelin, the hunger hormone, and decreases levels of leptin, the hormone that makes us feel full. To compensate for lower energy levels, people who sleep poorly may be more likely to seek relief in foods that raise blood sugar and put them at risk of obesity, which is a risk factor for diabetes.
Whats Considered High Blood Pressure
A blood pressure reading consists of two numbers:
- Systolic pressure. The first or top number tells you what the pressure is in your arteries during heartbeats.
- Diastolic pressure. The second or bottom number tells you what the pressure is in your arteries between heartbeats.
According to the American Heart Association , a normal or healthy blood pressure reading is less than 120/80 millimeters of mercury . The following categories define blood pressure readings that are above this level.
- Elevated. This is a systolic number between 120 and 129 mm Hg and a diastolic number less than 80 mm Hg.
- Stage 1 hypertension. Stage 1 is a systolic number between 130 and 139 mm Hg or a diastolic reading between 80 and 89 mm Hg.
- Stage 2 hypertension. Stage 2 is a systolic pressure thats 140 mm Hg or higher or diastolic pressure of 90 mm Hg or higher.
- Hypertensive crisis. This is a systolic pressure over 180 mm Hg or diastolic pressure over 120 mm Hg. Blood pressure in this range requires medical attention right away.
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Low Testosterone In Prediabetes
In men, testosterone levels commonly decrease if overweight. Lower testosterone levels are known to cause tiredness and weight gain. Low testosterone levels also cause you to go to the toilet more often and can interrupt sleep. Hormonal levels in women during menopause also fluctuate and can be a common time for weight gain to occur.
How Does Diabetes Affect Sleep
Its estimated that one in two people with type 2 diabetes have sleep problems due to unstable blood sugar levels and accompanying diabetes-related symptoms, High blood sugar and low blood sugar during the night can lead to insomnia and next-day fatigue. As with many chronic conditions, feelings of depression or stress about the disease itself may also keep you awake at night.
When blood sugar levels are high, the kidneys overcompensate by causing you to urinate more often. During the night, these frequent trips to the bathroom lead to disrupted sleep. High blood sugar may also cause headaches, increased thirst, and tiredness that can interfere with falling asleep.
By contrast, going too many hours without eating or taking the wrong balance of diabetes medication can also lead to low blood sugar levels at night. You may have nightmares, break out into a sweat, or feel irritated or confused when you wake up.
Talk to your healthcare provider if you are experiencing fatigue, trouble sleeping, or any other worrying symptoms. They can help analyze the reason and work with you to keep your blood sugar levels more stable.
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Understand Who Is At Risk
While family history plays a role in the development of prediabetes and diabetes, it most commonly develops in people who are overweight or less active.
“Diabetes is extremely common in the United States. We think that probably has a lot to do with the skyrocketing prevalence of obesity,” says Katheryn Jadeed MD.
So Can High Blood Pressure Make You Tired
You already probably know the answer from the forerunner to this but for avoidance of doubt, if you want the answer to the question: can high blood pressure make you tired?
The answer is yes, high blood pressure can make you tired. Yes, high blood pressure can cause fatigue. Yes, high blood pressure can make you feel exhausted most of the time.
For the most part, people with high blood pressure tend not show any symptoms. Hence, if you are not someone already diagnosed with hypertension the finger-pointing exercise will probably be in the wrong direction.
This is particularly so if you are one of those with masked high blood pressure. These are individuals with high blood pressure that is not obvious to their doctor when their blood pressure is measured.
These folks have normal blood pressure in front of their doctor but in actual fact they have high blood pressure in their day to day lives. The exact opposite of white coat hypertension. The only way to diagnose these folks is through ambulatory 24-hour blood pressure monitoring.
Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring will reveal the aha moment. High blood pressure diagnosed. Cause of tiredness and fatigue uncovered. Problem solved.
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