Question from Cincinnati, Ohio, USA:

I have never been officially diagnosed with hypoglycemia, but I experience nausea and light-headedness if I don’t eat for a period of six or more hours, or if I don’t eat breakfast fairly soon after waking up in the morning. I am now 30 years old. On about five or six occasions throughout my life, I have actually fainted. Now, I just try to avoid that situation by making sure that I eat something, even if it’s just a small snack, every four to five hours. My grandmother, great-uncle, and the great-uncle’s daughter on my father’s side all have type 2 diabetes. There is no history of diabetes on my mother’s side. I am not overweight, being 5’5″, 129 lbs. My question is, does it seem likely that I have some mild hypoglycemia? If so, what is the likelihood that it is a precursor for diabetes?