Lost consciousness, low blood sugar, gave blood

[psigna]

Today I gave blood for the first time since starting low carb in July.

I ate smoked sausage for breakfast.

Gave Blood. At 3 small ritz cheese bites.

2 chicken wings and cabbage for lunch.

Tonight as I was making dinner, I started feeling very light headed and sweaty. I had to sit down, the room was starting to swim. Got very hot. My daughters called my husband in the room.

I am a Med Tech, so I recognize the signs of low blood sugar. As my husband was getting me something to drink with sugar in it, I lost consciousness. Freaked them out. I don't remember it, only remember them calling my name out of it. Was out for maybe 15 seconds or so.

I drank some sunkist orange drink that we had. Could not think of anythink wuick to drink that Had sugar in it, and spoted the sunkist.

Now, my husband wants me to up my carbs to about 40 or so now.

Do you think it was just the combination of giving blood? I ate ok, about what I normally eat, and was getting ready to eat at the same time that we usually do.

I am goin to check my fasting sugar tomorrow to be on the safe side.

[cleochatra]

Re: Lost consciousness, low blood sugar, gave blood

We can't give medical advice here at ADBB, because a doctor will be able to tell you what is truly the prognosis. I believe people, as a whoile, are generally so uneducated about Atkins that they assume passing out giving blood is due to low blood sugar, especially when people on normal diets pass out, too!

Still, please see a doctor and get his prognosis! And don't scare me like that again, young lady. {{{you}}}

[psigna]

Re: Lost consciousness, low blood sugar, gave blood

Thanks. I am going to check with our pathologist tomorrow anyway. I give blood all the time, but this is the first experience I have had like this since I was 17 years old.

[Virgil]

Re: Lost consciousness, low blood sugar, gave blood

Hey!

The answer is YES. When you give blood you give everything that is "floating" in it at the time, i.e. red and white blood cells, plasma, blood sugars, blood lipids, antigens, and a bunch of other stuff.....that's why they can take a blood sample and diagnose all sorts of stuff: low/high blood sugar, HIV, Nile Virus, Syphilis, Hepatitis A, B, & C, iron levels, etc, ect, .....you got the picture.

One of the reasons they tell you to "eat a very good breakfast/lunch" within two hours of donating is to get the blood sugar up cause when they take your blood they also take the blood sugar with it!!!! Also why they insist that you have a drink of orange juice and eat some cookies afterward. Your brain needs a minimal level of blood glucose to operate.

I suspect that being an "Atkineer" in good standing you did not do anything to prep your system with carbs (blood sugar) hence by supper time you were at the "tilt level"....your body tilted you upside down to get your attention.

Next time you donate, do eat a "good breakfast/lunch" which includes slow release carbs (whole wheat toast or a high fiber cereal) and fast release carbs (orange juice or fresh fruit) along with your protien and fats and same goes if you are donating after lunch. Afterwards do have a drink of orange juice and a couple of cookies to replace the blood glucose (sugar) that you just "donated".

I'm not an expert on blood donations......the only reason I know what I know is that I am having surgery on the 13th of September and in the last two weeks I have "banked" two units of my own blood.

I was given the above advice. The first time I decided that I was smarter than the experts and nearly bashed my head on the kitchen sink on the way down..... Duh, like they tell you this just to hear themselves speak?????!!!!

The second time I decided to pay attention to what they had to say and I suffered no ill affects. Some of us just take a little longer to get with the program.

Good luck to you the next time.

[psigna]

Re: Lost consciousness, low blood sugar, gave blood

Thanks. I think it was the blood donation too. I have never donated while low carbing. Very scary to me, and my family too. I feel OK now, but they are "watching" me now for the rest of the night. We live in Mississippi (Delta, upper two thirds of the state) and we are watching the hurricane coverage now. Terrible.

[2big4mysize]

Re: Lost consciousness, low blood sugar, gave blood

I'm a regular donor and have never had issues with blood sugar while doing my Atkins. we need to eat our normal Atkins before drink to replace the volum of fluids lost during the giving which drops blood pressure and eat an Atkins snack and meales to replace all the stuff we lost. brains need very little carbs BTW almost all areas of the brain function on ketones just fine. Only areas like red cells and parts of the retina must have sugar as they don't contain mitochondria to convert fatty acids to fuels.

Glad you are a donor.
Check with your doc if your light headedness continues.

[Desertthorn]

Re: Lost consciousness, low blood sugar, gave blood

I work at blood donations often and folks are always passing out on us or feeling 'faint'.

[psigna]

Re: Lost consciousness, low blood sugar, gave blood

Again, this happened about 6 hours AFTER I donated. I know it was the low blood sugar, because as soon as I drank the juice i immediatley started feeling better. As I said, I am a Medical Technologist, and this is what I do for a living, so I have experience with the symptoms.

My husband wants me to up my carbs. I have been having usually less than 20 per day since June 27. I am doing about 50 minutes on the treadmill every other day. I think I am going to try that. I hope I still lose weight. I have lost 15 lbs as of this morning.

[Finelly]

Re: Lost consciousness, low blood sugar, gave blood

Move to OWL!

[goin2Bgood]

Re: Lost consciousness, low blood sugar, gave blood

I ate smoked sausage for breakfast. Gave Blood. At 3 small ritz cheese bites. 2 chicken wings and cabbage for lunch.

If that's all you had to eat until dinner, I honestly think you were also way low on calories for the day too and you need to watch that also.

[2big4mysize]

Re: Lost consciousness, low blood sugar, gave blood

Since you will not be tramatizing your body with a rapid loss of a pint of blood again anytime soon you can keep doing your Atkins after you recover from the blood sugar spike you just had from the OJ and be ready for the next time you donate blood. By then you should be well into your OWL phase.

blood sugar isn't always a matter of carb intake is what we are trying to tell you. check the diabetic forum and you will see even low carbing you can have high blood sugar readings. Our liver is a wizzard at making glucose from fats, proteins and carbohydrate byproducts. Had you properly eatten your Atkins for the day 6 hours after you gave the body would have replaced the glucose from production in the liver and the small amount of carbs you had at your next meal and your body would have been humming along.

Happy low carbing