Several health conditions and dizziness go hand in hand. If you suffer from dizziness, or vertigo, which is a feeling of spinning often accompanied by lightheadedness, weakness, and near fainting, it could potentially indicate the presence of several underlying health conditions, including low blood pressure, electrolyte imbalance, dehydration, a heart condition, or even hyperthyroidism.
However, dizziness is often an early warning sign of diabetes, or more specifically either low blood sugar, or hypoglycemia, or high blood sugar, which is known as hyperglycemia. Both can occur in diabetic patients if blood sugar levels are imbalanced. Diabetics often suffer dizziness due to several bodily malfunctions (i.e., lack of oxygen to the brain, blood sugar dropping, low blood pressure, dehydration, etc.). It’s important for diabetics to not ignore dizzy spells and learn how to prevent dizzy episodes before they lead to fainting. Dizziness for diabetics often occurs in one of 2 ways:
1. Diabetic hyperglycemia
Hyperglycemia tends to cause dizziness when the body is dehydrated, this leads to a spike in blood sugar levels when inadequate insulin is readily available for glucose energy. A spike in blood sugar levels can result in a domino effect of negative symptoms, including:
- Dehydration
- Confusion and lightheadedness
- Fainting and loss of balance
- Legs cramps
- Blurry vision
- Anaerobic metabolism, which occurs due to lack of oxygen in the bloodstream to fuel muscle energy.
- Diabetic ketoacidosis (or DKA), which is an emergency condition that robs the cells of glucose for energy and causes the body to burn fat for energy and triggers ketone production, which can lead to diabetic coma.
- Nonketotic diabetic acidosis (or HHNK), another potentially life-threatening condition most commonly caused by dehydration or the presence of an infection, and must be treated immediately.
2. Hypoglycemia
Often referred to as low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) results when glucose blood concentration plummets dangerously low due to improper insulin usage, or hunger and lack of energy. As a result, low blood sugar levels drop and dizziness occurs due to lack of glucose to fuel the brain and body. Warning signs of a hypoglycemic episode include:
- Excess sweating
- Confusion and lightheadedness
- Accelerated heart rate
- Dizziness and fainting episodes
- Blurred vision
- Diabetic coma can also occur if insulin or glucose-rich food is not consumed immediately.
