Blood sugar drops after eating, what is the cause?

Many people feel sleepy and weak after eating. This is actually still normal. However, you need to be careful if other symptoms appear. For example, the mind becomes dazed, the body sweats, or shakes. It could be that you experience a condition of low blood sugar after eating, also known as reactive hypoglycemia. What is reactive hypoglycemia? Is it dangerous if blood sugar drops? Find out the answer here.

Recognizing blood sugar levels in the body

After eating, sugar (glucose) is absorbed, moves from the intestinal tract, passes through the intestinal cells, then enters the blood vessels. In this state, blood sugar increases and becomes the main source of energy. Generally food is absorbed within four hours. After that, the body goes into a state of fasting. In this state, the source of energy for activity comes from the energy reserves in the body.

Changes in blood sugar levels after being absorbed and in this fasting phase do not change too much because the body has the hormones insulin and glucagon to control blood sugar. If it is too high, the hormone insulin will be released to lower blood sugar levels by entering blood sugar into cells. Meanwhile, glucagon is released when blood sugar levels are low to form glucose from the body's reserve nutrients, so that the levels can be raised.

What is reactive hypoglycemia?

When blood sugar levels drop below 70 mg / dL, this is known as hypoglycemia. This condition, or in people with diabetes is often referred to as "hypo", can also be experienced by people who do not have a history of diabetes (non-diabetes). There are two types of non-diabetic hypoglycemia:

1. Reactive hypoglycemia, namely hypoglycemia that occurs within a few hours of eating.
2. Fasting hypoglycemia, namely hypoglycemia that is not associated with eating. Generally associated with a disease, such as drug use (salicylates, sulfa or quinine class antibiotics), alcohol, severe liver, kidney and heart disease, insulinoma, and low levels of glucagon hormones.

Reactive hypoglycemia can occur in several conditions such as pre-diabetes or a risk of diabetes, obesity, gastric surgery, and enzyme deficiency.

In addition, if you eat foods that are too sweet or contain too many carbohydrates (foods with a high glycemic index value), your blood sugar levels will rise too high so that the hormone insulin is released a lot. As a result, a drop in blood sugar will occur in a short time and the drop can be quite drastic.

What are the symptoms of reactive hypoglycemia?

The symptoms of reactive hypoglycemia are the same as those of hypoglycemia in general. Hypoglycemia or a drastic drop in blood sugar can be characterized by the following symptoms:

• Hunger
• Body shaking
• Drowsiness and weakness
• Anxious
• Dizzy
• Dazed
• Sweating
• Cramps around the mouth

If symptoms like this appear, immediately determine whether your blood sugar level is really low and consult a doctor to perform several other tests such as checking blood glucose tolerance and insulin levels.

What to do if blood sugar drops after eating

For immediate treatment of reactive hypoglycemia, immediately consume carbohydrates that work fast (in the form of juice or candy) and are easily absorbed, approximately 15 grams of carbohydrates. After that, consult your doctor or nutritionist about dietary changes. Some of the recommended diets for people with reactive hypoglycemia are:

• Eat foods that contain balanced nutrition. These include protein, dairy products such as cheese and yogurt, and foods high in fiber.
• Limit foods high in sugar, especially those that have a too high glycemic index.
• Avoid foods high in sugar before bed or when you are unable to eat for a few hours such as fasting.
• Consumption of foods high in sugar after fasting also increases the state of reactive hypoglycemia.

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