June 28, 2003
Hypoglycemia
Question from Vernon Hills, Illinois, USA:
When I went in to wake my daughter for gym class, I knew from her response (her eyes would roll up under her lids while trying to look at me) that she was having a low. I gave her a juice box while I went to get her test kit, and when I checked, she was 31 mg/dl [1.7 mmol/L]. She then had more juice along with some bread, and 25 minutes later, her reading was 88 mg/dl [4.9 mmol/L].
How much trauma has her body gone through with that kind of low? Should my daughter take it easy for a few hours, or once her blood glucose level has returned to the “normal” range, can she resume regular activities? Her gym session is 3.75 hours long. and I wasn’t sure if it would be too much for her.
Answer:
It certainly takes some time to recover from a low blood sugar and feel ready for activities. I would use your best judgement in this case — and allow your daughter to participate when she feels ready. For more information on treating lows, please see hypoglycemia.
MSB
[Editor’s comment: Be sure she has had additional calories (including some protein) before starting vigorous activity. And lots of blood sugar testing.
WWQ]
