Low Blood Sugar

I am 13 months post op and I have been having trouble with dizziness/lightheadedness, fatigue, etc.  My blood pressure has been low but not alarmingly so.  Anyway I've been to the surgeon and my family practice about it.  Anyway today they gave me a call about my blood work and said I have low blood sugar and that I should come in and talk to the doctor.  Anyone have any experience with this?  Just curious what the solution has been for you.

I suspect I do as well but havent been to Dr yet about it .  I mainly am very tired lately all the time and my blood pressure is low.  I did check my blood sugar one am and it was like 50 ...  i think that might be low.. What was yours if you know? Shirley

50 is too low!  You can pass out from low blood sugars.  See a doc now!  It could happen when you are driving.  See my post below about NIPHS.

I started having this problem about a year out (I am now 2-1/2 years out).  My surgeon said this happens to about 5% of gastric patients.  Mine mainly occurs about 1-1/2 to 2 hours after breakfast while I'm on the treadmill.  I just have to stop what I'm doing and eat either peanut butter on wheat crackers or have a container of no-sugar-added yogurt and that stops it right away.  Just make sure you always have some of the pb crackers in your purse in case it hits when you're out!  I hate that feeling!!!!!  Good luck!!  Hugs, Connie 278/150/157

I have had experience with low blood sugar intermittently over the past 15 years but it has become increasingly worse since the surgery, actually since I figured out I can start eating cookies without experience dumping syndrome!  :-)   Definitely talk to you doctor and see what he/she has to say.  It can easily be controlled with a healthy diet! 

Hi, I'm 2 1/2 years out and diabetic.  I would like to respond to both the original post - I had periods of this until I learned that I have to watch my carbs (what carbs I eat and when).   You might want to read the Zone Diet.  Not that we (RnYeres) can totally follow the diet, but the book explains the reactions of insulin and  about low glycemic carbs. and to the one by Ann "I can start eating cookies without experience dumping syndrome!"-- You may think that you don't dump, but YOU DO.  The episode of low blood sugar is a result of eating the high carb item.  When the carbs (sugar when it digests) hits the intestines too fast -- because RnYs don't have the valve to keep it in the stomach and release it slowly --it absorbs rapidly causeing an insulin surge (you may experience a type of hot flash) to deal with the  increased sugar in your system.  As the insulin does it's job, you plunge into low blood sugar and your body is in a yo yo period as it trys to regulate itself.  THIS IS DUMPING and not a smart thing to do to yourself.  Over time, doing this to your body MAY cause you serious problems.  Please rethink those cookies.

Are you eating enough protein and drinking enough liquids? I mean at least 100 mg of protein and about 8 8oz glasses of water a day. Also try adding 1/3 glass of gatorade and 2/3 glass water. It's made a great difference for me!

There is a syndrome that they are just now recognizing.  It's called Noninsulinoma pancreautogenous hypoglycemic syndrome or NIPHS for short.  It's found in gastric bypass patients.  The beta cells of the pancreas go nuts and just make to much insulin.  And they do it with inappropriate foods at times, like a salad or hamburger. This is a very serious thing.  You can NOT control this by diet if you have it.   It seems to be showing up around the 2 year mark.  Fasting blood sugars are normal and 2 hour sugars are in the bottom of the barrel.  If they draw an insulin, proinsulin, and c-peptide, fasting will be normal and 2 hour will be elevated if you have NIPHS.   If you have a documented low sugar, you should be evaluated by an endocrinologist.  True hypoglycemia is exceedingly rare.  This is even rarer.  But I'm guessing, it's more common than anyone knows, just undiagnosed.   I'm being evaluated at Mayo this next week for this.  My local endo says I have it.  We'll see what Mayo says.  I am currently on Precose 25 mg three times a day.  It inhibits the absorption of sugar in the gut so the lows aren't so low.  But a lot of times, it doesn't matter what I eat or what I don't eat.  I've been as low as 38 in the doctor's office.  My endo says this is progressive and the drugs won't work forever.  I've been on it for a month and already I'm starting to have episodes again.  Even tho I eat correctly.   I have a paper I found written by Dr. F. John Service at Mayo, whom I'll be seeing that really is good at explaining it and the steps needed to diagnose NIPHS.  If anyone wants it, email me with your email addy and I'll forward it to you. This isn't something to mess around with.  I know of people who are passing out because their sugars are so low.    Be proactive about this.  Most PCPs haven't heard about this.  Have me email you the article to take with you.  Or google on NIPHS.

Hey girl ... good luck at Mayo ... be sure to let me know how it goes (like I need to tell you that) ... anyway ... my endo yelled at me about eating peanut butter crackers (since they obviously didn't work when I had my seizure and passed out, hitting my head and requiring 7 staples, and 2 days in the hospital).  The endo says pb crackers do not get into our systems fast enough ... told me I should carry something that works faster ... and we settled on trying little apple juice boxes (IF I experience this again -- it's been at least 4 times now).   I'm doing the precose too ... I wonder if Service is interested in finding out/talking to more of us? Talk to ya soon girlfriend ... Karyn

Please send me a copy of the article.  Thanks! My email address is:  [email protected] -Carol