High blood sugar, also called hyperglycemia, happens when you have an elevated blood sugar level or glucose in your blood is above the normal range. This differs from hypoglycemia which happens when your blood sugar falls below the normal range.
The effects of high blood sugar can be serious. Hyperglycemia might indicate that you are pre diabetic which is a major risk factor for developing type 2 diabetes.
Take the Diabetes Risk Test to help you determine your risk of developing pre-diabetes or type 2 diabetes.
This is a big health problem in our society today.
In the United States alone, an estimated 57 million people have pre diabetes. 50% of these people are expected to progress to type 2 diabetes.
It all starts with high blood sugar.
There are two main causes of high blood sugar. One is that the body does not produce enough insulin to move the glucose from the bloodstream into the cells to be used as energy.
The other main cause is when the insulin receptors on the cells are not working properly to receive the glucose. This is a sign of insulin resistance.
In both cases, excessive glucose is left hanging around in the bloodstream.
For diabetics, high blood sugar may occur when they haven't taken enough insulin for the food they have eaten.
High blood sugar can also occur with increased stress, with certain medications, lack of exercise, when you eat a lot of high glycemic, sugary foods or when you're sick. Take a look at some foods that lower blood sugar.
If hyperglycemia is left untreated, real problems can occur such as ketoacidosis, coma or even death.
Like with diabetes or pre diabetes, symptoms of high blood sugar may be mild or non-existent. Below are a few things to look for. Note that these symptoms are very similar to symptoms for type 2 diabetes...
It's important to familiarize yourself with the signs of high blood sugar. The more you know, the more you can help yourself by making some adjustments to your lifestyle to get your health back on track.
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