What happens if your blood sugar is 15?
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One of the challenges of managing diabetes is maintaining consistent blood sugar (glucose) levels. Even with diligence, some situations can cause high blood sugar, or hyperglycemia, while others can bring on low blood sugar, or hypoglycemia. Show After all, it’s not just carbohydrate intake that influences the amount of glucose coursing through your bloodstream when you have type 2 diabetes. Emotional stress and certain medications can increase your blood sugar levels, and a boost in activity can cause it to drop, says Megan O’Neill, CDCES, a medical science liaison for diabetes care at Abbott healthcare company in Monterey, California. Sometimes people experience a spike in their blood sugar early in the morning due to the “dawn effect,” a temporary surge of hormones that occurs as the body prepares to wake, according to the Cleveland Clinic. “For people with diabetes, managing blood glucose levels is especially important,” O’Neill says. “Levels that are too low or high can result in complications that affect your kidneys, heart, and vision, reduce your quality of life, require expensive interventions, or even be fatal.” RELATED: 5 Strategies to Help Avoid Diabetes Complications The more prepared you are to spot the signs of both high and low levels, the better able you’ll be to quickly and easily bring them back within a desired range and stay healthy. What’s the right range for you? The answer is slightly different for everyone, and your doctor can help you pinpoint yours. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) generally recommends trying to stay within these blood sugar targets:
The first step to staying in these ranges, and course-correcting high and low blood sugar levels along the way, is to monitor your blood sugar levels with a glucose meter. Clinical guidelines published January 2017 in Diabetes Care, the journal of the ADA, recommend that anyone taking insulin test their glucose at least four times per day and as many as 12 times per day. Those who are pregnant or have difficulty maintaining healthy blood sugar levels also need to test their blood sugar more often. Factors that increase the ideal testing frequency include the type of insulin, past levels of glucose control, and symptoms, O’Neill says. Some people with diabetes can benefit from continuous glucose monitoring, a device that allows you to get readings without finger pricks every five minutes, she says. RELATED: 9 Signs Your Blood Sugar Is Out of Control About High Blood Sugar (Hyperglycemia)High glucose levels occur when the body doesn't have enough insulin or can't properly use the insulin it has to shuttle glucose from the bloodstream to the body’s muscles, organs, and tissues for fuel, O’Neill says. As a result, the amount of sugar in the blood builds up. Hyperglycemia typically happens when you consume more carbohydrates or bigger portions of food than usual; if you don't take enough insulin or other diabetes medication as prescribed; and if you decrease your levels of physical activity, she says. Heightened stress levels can also increase blood sugar levels. Non-diabetes-related medications that are known to raise blood sugar levels include steroids, beta-blockers, birth control pills, and many mental health medications, she explains. Signs of high blood sugar include frequent urination, fatigue, dry or itchy skin, feeling thirsty, more frequent infections, and eating more food but not gaining as much weight as usual, says Athena Philis-Tsimikas, MD, the corporate vice president for the Scripps Whittier Diabetes Institute in La Jolla, California. High blood sugar levels can cause these symptoms through various mechanisms, according to the Mayo Clinic. For example, high blood sugar levels damage blood vessels and nerves throughout the body. They can also deprive organs of energy and can cause fluid to accumulate in the eyes. And in an attempt to get your blood sugar to a healthier level, your body will often increase urine output. A blood sugar reading above 180 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) is considered above normal and can bring on these symptoms, although it’s possible to have high blood sugar without any symptoms, Dr. Philis-Tsimikas says. A reading above 300 mg/dL can be dangerous, according to the University of Michigan, which recommends immediately informing your doctor if you have two or more readings of 300 mg/dL in a row. In severe cases, very high blood sugar levels (well above 300 mg/dL) can result in coma. If you experience mental confusion, nausea, or dizziness, proceed to the emergency room. Ways to treat high blood sugar include:
RELATED: 10 Surprising Causes of Blood Sugar Swings About Low Blood Sugar (Hypoglycemia)Is 15 a low blood sugar?Blood sugar below 70 mg/dL is considered low. If you think you have low blood sugar, check it. If you aren't able to check it, go ahead and treat it.
Is blood sugar level of 15 high?If your blood sugar level is slightly high for a short time, emergency treatment won't be necessary. But if it continues to rise you may need to act fast to avoid developing diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). If your blood sugar level is 15 mmol/l or more, you should check your blood or urine for ketones.
What is the rule of 15 in diabetes?Treatment—The "15-15 Rule"
The 15-15 rule—have 15 grams of carbohydrate to raise your blood glucose and check it after 15 minutes. If it's still below 70 mg/dL, have another serving. Repeat these steps until your blood glucose is at least 70 mg/dL.
What is a dangerously high blood sugar count?If your blood sugar level goes above 600 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL), or 33.3 millimoles per liter (mmol/L), the condition is called diabetic hyperosmolar syndrome.
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