Your evening drink may be impacting you more than you know. There’s been a ton of research for decades about whether drinking in moderation is helpful or harms your health. We’ve written in the past about the ways alcohol can impact health. And we like to use our blog to provide you with answers.
We know that our customers come from many different backgrounds. Some of you drink; others don’t. We make no judgment. It is a personal choice. We believe it’s essential to speak to your doctor about your specific health concerns and let them know how much you drink so that they can help you make the right choices for your health journey but whether or not you choose to drink is up to you.
A new study might change the way you view your evening drink. For people with blood sugar concerns, alcohol may hit their body differently than another person. That’s especially true if they drink on an empty stomach or take medication to help blood sugar.
Your liver usually stores glucose and releases it as needed. Drinking alcohol can impair the liver’s ability to release sugar. If you already struggle with blood sugar issues, or take blood sugar medication, it can be even harder for your body to compensate.
Hypoglycemia can happen quickly. The most common symptoms are feeling shaky, disoriented and anxious. Some of the symptoms of hypoglycemia can easily be mistaken for feeling “tipsy” or drunk. You might feel tired, have blurred vision or a headache, feel emotional, not be able to concentrate or be irritable. All of these symptoms could easily be mistaken for thinking you’ve had too much to drink, but it could be a sign that your blood sugar has dropped suddenly. Other symptoms like sweating, heart palpitations, a fast pulse and having tingling lips might make you recognize you have a more significant problem than just having had too much to drink.
If you have blood sugar concerns and think that alcohol has more of an effect on you than your friends or family, it might not be impacting you the way you think. You might not be “buzzed” or drunk but instead experiencing a hypoglycemic episode. If you have noticed this, we urge you to speak to your doctor and perhaps test your blood sugar when you drink. This research might make you rethink your evening drink.
While there are some arguments that alcohol may aid health, not everyone is the same. Everyone has different needs and concerns. If alcohol upsets your blood sugar, it might be time to give up drinking regularly.
