Hypoglycemia

I was diagnosed with HG when I was in my 20's. I did it to myself with years of yo-yo dieting. I can still eat wheat products, but I stick to whole grains (check fiber content, you want a least 4-6g). The only things I avoid are white carbs, especially sugar, white breads, potatoes, white rice, and corn. I'm also careful to eat small meals (more like snacks) every 3 or 4 hours. A snack might be a a 1/4 cup of peanuts, almonds or walnuts. Maybe an apple with peanut butter or a couple ounces of cheese on high fiber cracker bread.

I also avoid fruit juice (except grapefruit) and anything with artifical sweetners. I use honey and powdered stevia if I really need to sweeten something. I do drink a lot of herbal iced teas (even in winter) and occassionally real coffee.
Proteins are good to start the day (ex: one egg omlet with chopped onions and peppers), lunch is a usually a salad with chicken, fish or the soy stuff we discussed in another thread. Dinner is the only time I eat any real carbs like brown rice or some other grain like barley, millet, kasha, and on very rare occassions a whole wheat pasta.

I'm not a purist and I do "cheat" sometimes. If my husband and I go out to a good restaurant or have dinner at a friends, I will eat the bread that is served and even desert (shared with hubby). And once year at our county farm fair I eat bratwurst with everything on it, including the white doughy roll.

The bad thing with HG is that is makes you crave all the stuff you should not eat and it seems to slow down the metabolism. I think exercise, or just being active by walking, is very important for weight control and overall metabolism health.

Search out a glycemia index, and determine something both edible and low on the list. Add that to your diet, to avoid getting into hypoglycemia. If it happens anyway, skim (non fat) milk will raise the blood sugar about as fast as anything.

Indulge in a light bedtime snack, again, something fairly low on the list. Don't overdo it, though.

I too started battling hypoglycemia in my early 20s. My biggest failing was skipping breakfast and then eating something with a high GI for lunch. I would get light headed and actually blacked out a couple times from the sugar rush.

I eat a lot of whole grains, including wheat, but I avoid processed white foods such as breads, sugar, pasta and white rice. I also avoid sugary drinks including fruit juice. Like GW, I'm not fanatical about it either. If you eat a food with a high GI, combine it with a lean protein and quality fats such as olive oil or canola oil to reduce the overall GI of the meal. The bottom line is to eat small amounts of low GI foods throughout the day, eating every 3 hours or so.

I bought some nuts to snack on.

i have not yet been diagnosed but i am beginning to suspect hypoglycemia/low blood sugar. lately i have been very confused, have anxiety, dizziness, fatigued, weak, depressed, and generally low. i know i need to gain more weight - i lost about 20 pounds suddenly about 6 months ago and haven't been able to gain it back. how does a doctor diagnose someone with this? what tests should i have them run?

Rosie - you need to have a glucose tolerance test. You will have to fast for 12 hours and then you will be given a sugar/syrup drink. You blood sugar will then be monitored over the next few hours to determine if you have a problem. Any family doctor can arrange a test for you. However, you symptoms could be many things and I think you should see a doctor about them.