Blood sugar crash during diving

[laivindil]

Hi all. I used to have hypoglycemia when I was younger but have since grown out of it. I used to have to eat every 2-3 hrs but now (and for the last couple years) I can go entire days without eating. During my OW dives I ate a light breakfast and only lasted through the ESA before I was done for the day. My second attempt I completed a 30 min and 23 min dive but crashed at the end of the 23 min dive and stayed out of the water. For those two dives I ate a large breakfast and ate something in the area of 3-4 sandwiches + fruit between the two dives. In the pool I have no problems for extended periods. I'm in WA state so the only things I can think it might be is cold water (I'm in a wetsuit; famer john style plus jacket so 14mm on my torso - should be enough?) and/or increased metabolism just from being underwater. I'm going to a dive doc as soon as I can get an appointment. I'm hoping there's something I can do or through experience it will go away. Any thoughts on causes/solutions?

 

[Ann Marie]

My son hasn't dove with me in a while (his girlfriend and car are more important right now ) but he is diabetic. When he did dive with me, I had a tube of cakemate (icing) in both of our BC pockets (similar in size to a small tube of toothpaste). We were very religious about checking his blood sugar prior to a dive but the figured that the cakemate would be enough to bring his sugar up so that we could surface safely and then get something more substantial in him.

Luckily, he hasn’t had an episode where he needed the sugar underwater.

Excitement and stress can also be factors in the levels of your bloodsugar.

 

[padiscubapro]

Hi all. I used to have hypoglycemia when I was younger but have since grown out of it. I used to have to eat every 2-3 hrs but now (and for the last couple years) I can go entire days without eating. During my OW dives I ate a light breakfast and only lasted through the ESA before I was done for the day. My second attempt I completed a 30 min and 23 min dive but crashed at the end of the 23 min dive and stayed out of the water. For those two dives I ate a large breakfast and ate something in the area of 3-4 sandwiches + fruit between the two dives. In the pool I have no problems for extended periods. I'm in WA state so the only things I can think it might be is cold water (I'm in a wetsuit; famer john style plus jacket so 14mm on my torso - should be enough?) and/or increased metabolism just from being underwater. I'm going to a dive doc as soon as I can get an appointment. I'm hoping there's something I can do or through experience it will go away. Any thoughts on causes/solutions?

beside the extra energy required to lug all that gear around, your body is burning lots of extra fuel to try and maintain your body temperature.. remember water pulls away heat from your body many times faster than in air... You can easily burn a few thousand calories on a single dive..

Its always a good idea to load up on some carbs, its easy fuel for the body...

 

[Lloyd]

You might try lowering your carb intake and increasing your protein intake. That will get your blood sugar up longer. The sandwiches and fruit have alot of sugar and carbs which kick your insulin up and cause you to crash sooner.
Lloyd

 

[Doc Intrepid]

What Lloyd said. My cave instructor was diabetic, and also swore by the tubes of cake frosting. He carried a few with him during all dives (hell, he could even suck on the tube underwater if necessary...some of those decos get long!)

Another thing you may want to consider is a drysuit. For PNW diving they are not just a little warmer - they're significantly warmer; especially during those surface intervals when the wind can kick up. If you're going to be out on the water for long periods, and given your personal performance parameters, a drysuit might be a wise investment.

FWIW. YMMV.

 

[SteveDiver]

You might try lowering your carb intake and increasing your protein intake. That will get your blood sugar up longer. The sandwiches and fruit have alot of sugar and carbs which kick your insulin up and cause you to crash sooner.
Lloyd

I agree....The carbs will pick you up temporarly and crash you sooner...Maybe you should carry a tube of glucose in you BCD just to be safe.

 

[Bill51]

I’m not hypoglycemic, but I have a very high metabolism and low body fat so I’m used to eating constantly. Long cold dives leave me hungry and out of energy if I’m not careful but I found the one food that seems to have just the right balance of sugar and protein to eat before a dive and it never lets me down – Payday candy bars.

 

[Snowbear]

Another "vote" for what Lloyd said.... proteins will be metabolized slower and will keep your blood sugar more "even" than the spike and crash of simple or complex carbs.

I can get hypoglycemic as well, but in the last 10 years or so since I started paying more attention to how I eat, by consuming more proteins and less carbs, it's not even an issue any more. And yes ~ diving, especially as a n00b and in cold water will burn a lot more calories than you're used to.

 

[ReefGuy]

I also was diagnosed with hypoglycemia when I was in the 6th grade (gotta love the glucose tolerance test). Although it doesn't affect me anymore, I do, at times, know that I need to avoid certain foods. Before I dive, I try to eat something containing protein - light on carbs. Never had an issue.

 

[ctmax]

I am Diabetic and dive on a regular basis in the North East. I carry a tube of Glucose gel with me and make sure my dive buddy knows about my ailment. I tend to stay away from the cake frosting, It doesn't get into my system as fast as the glucose gel. I am religious about testing before and after a dive and always carry a Few Balance Bars. I find that they have enough carbs to get me out of trouble and protein to keep my blood sugar up longer. I always have them no matter what I am doing, biking, kayaking, hiking...... I have been fortunate not to have my blood sugar drop while under water but I can tell you that if it did I wouldn't be afraid to swallow some water with the glucose gel.