All three need to be balanced. If any one of these is off, blood sugar levels can be too. In general, higher than normal blood glucose levels can be caused by:. A single high blood sugar reading usually isn't cause for alarm — it happens to everyone with diabetes from time to time. But if you have high blood sugar levels a lot, let your parents and your diabetes health care team know. Insulin or meal plans may need adjusting, or you may have an equipment issue, like an insulin pump that isn't working right.
Whatever the case, make sure you get help so you can get your blood sugar levels back under control. Treating high blood sugar levels involves fixing what caused them in the first place.
Your diabetes health care team will give you specific advice on how to keep your blood sugar levels in a healthy range. But here are some ways to manage the common causes of high blood sugar levels:.
Don't worry too much if you get a high blood sugar reading occasionally. But if you have consistently high blood sugar levels, you should talk to your doctor about it. When the body doesn't have enough insulin, glucose stays in the blood and can't get into the body's cells to be used for energy. This can happen, for example, when someone skips doses of insulin or when the need for insulin suddenly increases like when a person is sick with the flu and the doses are not adjusted.
When the body can't use glucose for fuel, it starts to use fat. When this happens, chemicals called ketones are released into the blood. Some of these ketones, like extra glucose, pass out of the body through the urine. High levels of ketones in the blood can be a problem because they cause the blood to become acidic. Too much acid in the blood throws off the body's chemical balance and causes the symptoms listed below. DKA is a very serious condition that can lead to coma or death if it's not treated.
The good news, though, is that it's preventable and can be treated. DKA happens more often in people with type 1 diabetes, but can sometimes also happen to those with type 2 diabetes. The symptoms of diabetic ketoacidosis usually don't develop all at once — they usually come on slowly over several hours.
If a person with diabetes does not manage the sugar levels in their blood, they can develop a severe complication called diabetic ketoacidosis DKA. If a person does not get treatment for ketoacidosis, they can fall into a diabetic coma , which is a dangerous complication of diabetes. In this article, we look at how to recognize hyperglycemia, ways to treat it, and possible causes and complications.
Even at this level, symptoms may not occur immediately or at all. A person may have hyperglycemia but experience no noticeable symptoms for years. Symptoms tend to get worse the longer blood sugar levels remain elevated. Hyperglycemia symptoms may include:. People with diabetes should self-monitor regularly to catch glucose levels before they reach the stage where they cause symptoms.
A person with diabetes can take steps to reduce, prevent, and treat spikes of blood glucose. These steps include:. Managing diabetes is an ongoing and often lifelong endeavor. A person who has diabetes and especially hyperglycemia should consider wearing a necklace or bracelet that provides information about their condition, as it might impact the administration of other treatments. The information contained in a medical ID can be life-saving in situations where an individual cannot speak for themselves, such as after a vehicle accident or during severe DKA.
Hyperglycemia usually occurs in people with prediabetes or diabetes. The causes of hyperglycemia in people with diabetes include:. Hyperglycemia in people who have not been diagnosed with diabetes is known as nondiabetic hyperglycemia. It may occur in people who are critically ill or injured , when the body responds to extreme stress with hormonal changes that affect blood sugar levels. Additionally, nondiabetic hyperglycemia can occur in people with certain health conditions, such as pancreatic and hormonal disorders.
It can also be a side effect of certain drugs. This condition occurs in the early morning when certain hormones, such as epinephrine, glucagon, and cortisol, cause the liver to release glucose into the blood. Typically, your doctor will diagnose you with insulin resistance , prediabetes , or diabetes after seeing that your blood sugar levels are abnormal. While many people tend to associate high blood sugar most closely with type 2 diabetes, other conditions are linked with hyperglycemia, too.
But physical symptoms of the condition may show up as well. Too-high blood sugar levels can even lead to a life-threatening condition called diabetic ketoacidosis , also called diabetic coma. High blood sugar can be seen in various forms of diabetes, including type 1, type 2, and gestational. After all, healthy foods such as fruits and veggies also contain carbs and sugar.
The value of carbs differs according to their complexity, and sugar in food is different from blood sugar. Tracking your carb intake, especially if you have diabetes, is also critical for avoiding blood sugar spikes.
Exercise is one of the best ways to get rid of high blood sugar. But if you have ketoacidosis, you should not exercise but rather go to the emergency room. When you exercise, your body uses glucose as its primary energy source. This, in effect, will help bring down your blood sugar levels. Working out regularly will lower your A1C. The positive effects of regular exercise are unmistakable. According to the American Diabetes Association, working out can lead to blood sugar-reducing effects for up to 24 hours.
Diabetic ketoacidosis is treated with emergency insulin and fluids administered intravenously. But the goal with blood sugar control is to prevent this type of medical emergency from happening in the first place. If your blood glucose readings are consistently higher than usual, you may not be getting enough insulin. Talk to your doctor about adjusting your dosage. You should also tell them about any other prescription or over-the-counter medication you take, as these could affect your blood sugar, too.
Corticosteroids for inflammation are just one example. Recognizing early signs and symptoms of hyperglycemia can help you treat the condition promptly. Watch for:. If hyperglycemia goes untreated, it can cause toxic acids ketones to build up in your blood and urine ketoacidosis.
Signs and symptoms include:. During digestion, your body breaks down carbohydrates from foods — such as bread, rice and pasta — into various sugar molecules. One of these sugar molecules is glucose, a main energy source for your body. Glucose is absorbed directly into your bloodstream after you eat, but it can't enter the cells of most of your tissues without the help of insulin — a hormone secreted by your pancreas.
When the glucose level in your blood rises, it signals your pancreas to release insulin. The insulin unlocks your cells so that glucose can enter and provide the fuel your cells need to function properly. Any extra glucose is stored in your liver and muscles in the form of glycogen.
This process lowers the amount of glucose in your bloodstream and prevents it from reaching dangerously high levels. As your blood sugar level returns to normal, so does the secretion of insulin from your pancreas. Diabetes drastically lowers insulin's effects on your body. This may be because your pancreas is unable to produce insulin type 1 diabetes , or it may be because your body is resistant to the effects of insulin or doesn't produce enough insulin to maintain a normal glucose level type 2 diabetes.
As a result, glucose tends to build up in your bloodstream hyperglycemia and may reach dangerously high levels if not treated properly. Insulin or other drugs are used to lower blood sugar levels. Illness or stress can trigger hyperglycemia because hormones produced to combat illness or stress can also cause your blood sugar to rise.
0コメント