Updated April 23, 2008

Take a Bite Out of Hypoglycemia
10 Proven Strategies for Cutting Down on Low Blood Glucose

by Gary Scheiner, M.S., C.D.E.

As the saying goes, the one constant in life is change. The same goes for your diabetes self-care. What worked yesterday may not work today, so don’t hesitate to make changes if you see a pattern of low readings. A single low could be caused by just about anything, but a pattern of lows indicates a problem with your current program.

Strategize to minimize
Living with diabetes can be a real pain in the rear sometimes (no pun intended). And nothing makes diabetes more disruptive in daily life than low blood glucose. Take the lows seriously. They present a greater threat to your well-being than any single high reading. While it may not be possible to eliminate the lows entirely, the 10 strategies listed here should allow you to lessen their frequency and severity.

It may not be possible or practical to implement all 10 strategies at once, so take them one at a time. Try focusing on one each week, and then add another the next week. If in 10 weeks you’re not completely satisfied, you can give me a call or send an e-mail. Maybe we can figure it out together.

Gary Scheiner is a Certified Diabetes Educator with a private practice near Philadelphia. He provides diabetes self-management education and blood glucose control consulting through his Web site (www.integrateddiabetes.com) and toll-free hotline (877-SELF-MGT). For more information, contact him at gary@integrateddiabetes.com.

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