This is a quick article that I wrote for Associated Content about snacks that are great for preventing serious blood sugar drops to very low levels.
From my experience as a nurse, I've witnessed patient's admitted to the hospital with blood sugar problems from skipping meals or replacing meals with candy. Blood sugar is really serious although I know it sounds trivial. Your brain relies on sugar as fuel to keep your body in working order. It's a great idea to carry a couple of snacks with you in case you are ever caught in a situation where you can't grab something to eat.
As a rule, small frequent meals are best for you. They keep your sugar level more balanced and prevent the highs and lows from occurring as frequently. A few good snack ideas for when you feel your sugar dropping are peanut butter crackers, a bag of peanuts, beans, cheese, any kind of nut, a protein bar or shake, or a peanut butter sandwich. Basically anything with protein is a great idea. Proteins are eventually broken down into sugar in your body, and provide much more fuel than just eating plain sugar.
A rule of thumb for noticing if someone is having blood sugar problems is: "Hot and dry, sugar's high. Cold and clammy, give them candy." If someone is having a hypoglycemic attack (very low blood sugar), give them some orange juice, soda or candy to get their sugar levels back up quickly. Then, start giving them proteins such as the snacks mentioned above. The candy will cause their blood sugar to peak, and the protein will then prevent their sugar from bottoming out again.
Hopefully you will never experience any serious problems from emergency hunger. It is not something to be ignored. Do not skip meals and always carry a snack, especially if you are a diabetic. Although, everyone can have low blood sugar when skipping meals. Extreme low blood sugar can eventually lead to death. So take note of the snacks mentioned above, and plan to carry a couple with you wherever you go just in case. You never know what situation you will be in, and you do not want to experience any problems with blood sugar.
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I gotta thank you for the information. Small things like this are really important to keep in mind. At my work at least once a day there's people coming through, some saying they feel on the verge of passing out because of their sugar. And even I myself have let my blood sugar drop to such a point. I'll have to bring an emergancy stash with me to work from now on. Thank you so much for the information!
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