Whats too high blood sugar?

Do you wake up feeling dizzy, lightheaded, and thirsty? Do your fingers tingle or maybe even feel numb? Well, then it’s possible that hello diabetes, you have a high blood sugar. But how exactly do we know the limit of “too high” when it comes to glucose levels?

Spoiler Alert: There are various reasons why having elevated blood sugars is awful news for every part of your body.

Hold on tight – let’s dive into what biologically happens when our sugar levels take off like an F-16 jet plane.

Understanding The Blood Sugar Levels (AKA Glucose Levels)

Let’s keep things simple first. When we talk about glucose levels in the bloodstream, there are two units:

1) Milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) – This unit is mainly utilized in the United States.
2) millimoles per liter (mmol/L) – Used worldwide besides America.

These units help measure the total amount of ‘sugar’ with other nutrients floating around in our blood supply.

In general terms:
Less than 70 mg/dl or 3.9 mmol/L indicates low blood sugar
Between 70 to 99 mg/dl or 3.9 to 5.5 mmol/L depicts a healthy range
Consistently exceeding above this upper limit can be worrying

Why Does It Matter?

Imagine being stuck in a traffic jam; all cars honking their horns frantically while trying to weave through the lanes – it’s chaos. Similar to this scenario, excess glucose moving throughout circulation leads to a similar commotion inside us without any signals from brakes put on by insulin hormone production promptly!

Thereby creating significant implications culminating as:
Diabetes Mellitus Type I and/or II diagnosis
The body has a reduced ability to utilize Insulin production for blood sugar regulation
Increase risk of Cardiovascular Diseases
A critical consequence due to surplus glucose in the bloodstream resulting in plaque accumulation inside vessel walls. Yes, that’s right folks; it is genuinely blockage waiting to happen.

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Question: So we know when our blood glucose level crosses certain boundaries between 70-99 mg/dl or 3.9-5.5 mmol/L and that too much might be bad news, but how does this affect our body?

Glucose Red Flags Causing Trouble

When someone describes “sugar high,” they are usually imagining hyperactivity mixed with delight as seen often during Halloween movies where children eat tons of candy – perfect recipe for fructose induced excitement. Sadly, This isn’t something similar.

These glucose alarms can cause multiple problems:

Immediate Symptoms Of High Blood Sugar

Think about all those times you went overboard on dessert after pledging not to have seconds or thirds—you surly had symptoms like frequent urination and thirst:
Blurry Vision and/or vision changes.
The lens thickens preliminary causing halos surrounding light sources becoming more prominent compared to previously observed patterns—thank you sweet sweet sugar cravings!

• Increased Thirst
  • extra fluid loss via urine leaving your mouth parched

Keep yourself hydrated!

Gradual But Significant Risks Looming Ahead

It’s easy not paying attention because there are no immediate warning signs that surface from ongoing high glucose levels until it becomes an alarming issue which then leads us towards some harsh realizations concerning occurring complications:

Diabetic Ketoacidosis (DKA)

High sugars in their full glory means limited insulin response and thus forced switch using protective breakdown mechanisms known quite cordially as “Ketone Production.” These ketones enter the bloodstream resulting in acidic changes in our body which, can cause:
Severe Dehydration
The body cannot keep up with how quickly the fluids are being lost.
Delirium or Coma
Affecting brain functionings and breathing patterns.

Hyperglycemic Hyperosmolar Syndrome (HHS)

Primarily diagnosed within Type II diabetics. Like DKA, Blood Glucose tends not to stay behind limits prescribed by medical professionals causing more harm than good! With no insulin at work here, the scenario entails:

• Thickening of blood -> a saucepan analogy; when sugar is added in large amounts without any dilution resultingly increasing thickness – viscosity – dangerous. This leads to poor circulation of oxygenated blood inside our bodies —not an ideal condition followed by subsequent consequences as given below:

  • Altered Consciousness

  • Excess urination

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Question: So now we know why having excessive glucose levels harmful for us but what causes it?

Leading Causes Of High Blood Sugar Levels

Inactivity And Poor Lifestyle Habits

Going down memory lane pops uncle Bob who after retirement took off on travelling across countries around the world enjoying life to its fullest where testing sugar levels were least priorities on mind charts. You might want a similar lifestyle too but doing so may land you into some serious trouble.
This sedentary lifestyle playing video games all day long alongside binging junk food means too much free time indicates less energy expenditure compared to energy influx leading towards obesity and potential diabetes risks.

Medication Side-Effects

It’s important that you discuss side-effects of all medication with your doctors beforehand nobody likes unwanted surprises!
Some drugs give rise to inhibition factors resulting in blocking signals for mouth’s pancreas gland preventing sufficient continuous Insulin production affecting glucose utilization ultimately culminating as high glucose concentration signs.

Hormonal Imbalances & Other Diseases’ Influence

Sugar rushes; that’s a chemistry lesson right there – it involves other hormones such as glucagon, cortisol, adrenaline and many more.No wonder The Hormone Waterfall – these guys influence not only your sugar concentration but also affect every important organ inside you connected in various ways.

Diseases Influencing Hyperglycemia

Imagine wanting to enjoy munchy snacks alongside your Netflix binge but experiencing excruciating pain in the night leading towards hospitalization issues. Many prevalent diseases lead us towards hyperglycaemia:
Pancreatitis
Abnormalities occurring inside the pancreas may reduce the body’s ability to produce insulin increasing risks of diabetes mellitus Type II
Cushing’s disease/ Liver Disease/Tumors
There are several metabolic pathways identified by scientists via which increased liver activity can increase blood sugar levels causing any further health discomforts.

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Question: Is there anything I can do myself?

Managing High Blood Glucose Levels

Few Tips come handy always!

1) Stay Active
Movement is medicine! Even 10-15 minutes’ walk each day makes an enormous difference helping improve glucose utilization efficacy through muscle contractions resulting in less risk of diabetic symptoms or cardio issues.

2) Portion Control
Overeating regularly means excessive food consumption—your metabolism offering limited compensation methods for excess energy influx—the least unhealthy choice open left is converting and storing back into fat cells located throughout our bodies.

3) Limit Sugar Intake & Educate Yourself On Eating Fructose Rich Foods
Enjoying sweet treats once in a blue moon isn’t harmful; however, fructose-rich items mustn’t make their way through daily living routines becoming hazards waiting to happen!

4)Good Quality Sleep Vs Low-Quality Sleep

Surprise!, Not resting properly results often leads to high glucose levels because sleep deprivation hormonal changes cause reduced glucose sensitivity with associated oxidative stress worsened with dysregulated glucose tolerance developing into cortisol spikes you wouldn’t want.

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Question: So what have we learned today?

Conclusion – Let’s Wrap It Up

All in all, High Glucose Levels are detrimental to our existence. If not kept under watchful surveillance or blind faith in the goodness of such food choices lead us towards many complications manifesting due to lifestyle habits like eating fructose-rich foods regularly and leading sedentary lifestyles lacking movement ultimately resulting in problems that shake foundations upon which a healthy future was supposed to be guaranteed.

Remember folks, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!

Stay Safe, Stay aware!