DIET FOR HYPOGLYCEMIA: FOOD, TIPS AND MENU - NUTRITION - 2025

A diet to treat hypoglycemia includes low-glycemic carbohydrates, soluble fiber, and plant and animal proteins. It is also important to avoid a number of foods.

Currently in the world there is a large percentage of people who suffer unfortunately a disease called hypoglycemia where we find patients of all characteristics.

What is hypoglycemia and how does it appear?

According to the American Diabetes Association, hypoglycemia is "a condition characterized by abnormally low blood glucose (blood sugar) levels."

This hypoglycemic condition is usually detected and diagnosed when the amounts in the blood are less than 70mg / dl, although this usually varies depending on several factors.

Low blood glucose levels occur when our pancreas stops working correctly, thus creating excess insulin and ultimately leading to such blood glucose levels.

Now, at the time of referring to the causes of the appearance of this disease, there can be several, ranging from a hereditary pathology to eating problems.

There are also other types of pathologies such as candidiasis, pancreatitis, adrenal insufficiency, kidney problems, alterations related to the thyroid glands or directly to the pituitary.

Key foods in the diet for hypoglycemia

The quantity of beneficial foods is varied, always remembering not to overuse the quantities. Here is a list divided according to three precepts:

Favorable general foods

Proteins of plant or animal origin found in these foods:

1. Egg
2. Meat
3. Fish
4. Soy

Whole-grain foods

1. Whole grain cookies
2. Corn tortillas
3. Integral rice
4. Wheat noodles
5. Oats

Herbal infusions without caffeine

1. Alfalfa
2. Chamomile
3. Comfrey
4. Dandelion
5. Juniper
6. Peppermint

Foods to avoid

After seeing the different key foods to carry out the diet in a correct and successful way, it is necessary to know first-hand which are the ones to avoid under all circumstances.

We must start with pasta, which introduce high percentages of fatty seasonings, such as, for example, pillas or cannelloni.

Also, the products belonging to the confectionery are especially harmful, not only for a hypoglycemic diet, but for any other. Within this family we find all kinds of sweets, ice creams, snacks, etc…

Finally, beverages such as soft drinks from recognized brands such as Coca Cola or Fanta should be noted. These, in addition to a large number of harmful chemicals, tend to show very high amounts of sugar.

That is why it is recommended, if you opt for them, always try to choose those that do not contain sugar such as zero, or directly look for alternatives such as natural juices or smoothies.

Keys to a successful diet

Meals in small quantities, regularly and constantly

It has always been said that you have to eat a total of five meals a day, but things change when we talk about a hypoglycemic diet.

The ideal here would be to place yourself in the six or seven meals a day that are around the intake of two to three hours normally. It will also help us not to gain weight as it would normally occur.

Now, one of the keys, as we have mentioned before, is to eat small amounts, since eating in large proportions can create excess insulin and as a consequence worsen the hypoglycemia suffered.

Eat low-glycemic carbohydrates

If we decide to opt for carbohydrates with a high glycemic percentage, it is possible that the sugar in our blood causes insulin to be stimulated to quickly cause hypoglycemia.

Therefore, it would be wise to try to avoid refined or processed carbohydrates for the low glycemic index. Which can be an example of this?

Foods such as cereals such as oatmeal, raisin bread, or ground whole grain flour, fruits belonging to temperate climates, and different types of whole grain pasta.

Add protein to your diet

These make our sugar levels regulate in a much more efficient way right after eating. We can choose between cheese, chicken, fish, vegetables, eggs, vegetables or even different varieties of seeds.

Add soluble fiber

Like the effect that protein has on our body, adding soluble fiber to our diet will effectively help regulate glucose. Its effect causes the water to be absorbed creating a gel that delays the rise in the sugar levels presented.

We can find soluble fiber in foods such as psyllium, flaxseeds, oats, aubergines, or fruits such as apple or orange.

Avoid excessive consumption of caffeine

This causes the production of caffeine itself in our body to be stimulated, which is why the symptoms derived from hypoglycemia are worsened due to the effects of adrenaline.

Perform physical exercise

The ideal thing to stay completely healthy would be to do physical activity. The ideal is based on parameters of 30 minutes a day of sport a total of 3 days a week.

In this section, variety is served, as you can do different types of sports such as running, swimming, cycling or even long walks at a medium-fast speed, which becomes something totally idyllic to combine with our diet.

Steps to follow to perform the intake successfully

See a doctor

First of all, and starting to eat and practice a diet that is accessible and healthy for hypoglycemic patients, we must seek the help of an expert. The correct thing to do would be to go to a specialized doctor.

Therefore, the diet should be changed after visiting an expert in the field who can analyze the particular case before which it is presented in order to diagnose you and prepare for what would be the next step to complete.

Go to a nutritionist

After having been diagnosed once and for all by the doctor, and with your case ahead, we will have to visit a nutritionist. This, as a result of analyzing the characteristics of the patient, will be able to make a correct vision about the foods that you should eat to plan a table for days.

Watch out for symptoms

It is appropriate that we constantly monitor the symptoms of hypoglycemia, as these may vary depending on the amounts, times or directly the type of food you eat.

So it is advisable to keep up to date regularly and propose fixed dates (for example once a week) to take stock of how food has affected our body.

Follow the guidelines

In the section at the top, we have explained a series of guidelines and practical advice that should be followed after entering the diet itself.

If this is done in a common way, it is most likely that there is no problem when executing the diet.

Keep in weight

Once we are on a full diet, we will always have to try to maintain the same amount of kilos. According to specialists, it has been shown that the amount of weight interferes in the different body processes that control the amount of glucose in the blood.

That is why it is advisable to always keep the same amount of weight.

Weekly menu example

Based on the characteristics that a correct intake must present if hypoglycemia occurs, we have combined two types of varied diets, in order to be able to choose the one you like the most.

Diet number 1

Breakfast

• A tablespoon of brewer's yeast mixed with a tomato juice.

Midmorning

• A cup of chamomile tea.
• A piece of fruit such as an apple.

lunch

• Two grilled chicken breast fillets.
• A lettuce and tomato salad with a tablespoon of vegetable oil.
• A broccoli soup.
• We finish with a flavorless gelatin.

Snack

• Small handful of nuts, preferably peanuts.

Dinner

• Two slices of whole grain bread.
• Two ounces of natural cheddar cheese.
• A glass of soy milk.
• A piece of fruit such as a pear.

Diet number 2

Breakfast

• Three-quarters of a cup of corn flakes with skim milk.
• A couple of whole wheat toasts with a slice of margarine plus a teaspoon of sugar and jam.
• A piece of fruit, to prefer mandarin.
• Three-quarters of a cup of decaffeinated coffee with saccharin.

Midmorning

• A medium-sized apple.

lunch

• Half a cup of cooked carrot.
• A spoon of Italian dressing.
• An avocado or banana to choose.
• Half a cup of seed and nuts.
• A lean hamburger bun with sliced ​​fresh lettuce and tomato.

Mid afternoon

• A piece of fruit such as an apple.
• A cup of skimmed date.

Dinner

• Combination of fruits such as strawberries or grapes for example.
• Half a cup of green beans along with half a baked potato.
• Vegetable roll.
• A baked chicken breast fillet.

Another type of food for the diet: supplements

In addition to common foods, there are other types of food treatments. So, we must talk about the additional supplements.

These are an extra contribution that is commonly given in the form of small envelopes, powders, tablets or even in some cases pills.

For this reason, experts recommend, for example, adding 15 to 20 grams, for example, of glucose if we want to improve our state in the form of a supplement.

There are also supplements in the form of carbohydrates. It would be advisable, in the same way as with glucose, to ingest a total of about 15 grams.

It should be noted that there are many more possibilities for supplements, but the most common are usually the two examples that we have explained in the previous written lines.

How to prevent disease

In any case, and despite the symptoms of the disease and its consequences, we are going to provide you with a series of tips to prevent it if you still do not suffer from it and in this way not have to carry out the keys given during the article.

- Eat foods rich in carbohydrates: They help us to slowly absorb sugar in the blood, not sharply increasing glucose levels. Within this group we find such as whole grains and pasta as well as different legumes, vegetables, greens and of course nuts.

- Avoid the practice of excessive physical activity or that reaches extremes: This leads us to a sudden drop in our blood sugar levels. If low blood sugar levels are already present, it is recommended that blood glucose be regulated.

- Do not skip meals and eat several a day: If we do not skip meals and perform the corresponding ones, we will make our glucose levels drop sharply, thus avoiding the disease.