Diet for Reactive Hypoglycemia

Reactive (or postprandial) hypoglycemia is a condition in which blood sugar drops two to three hours after eating, causing a variety of unpleasant symptoms including shaking, nervousness and nausea. It is possible to completely eliminate these symptoms through dietary changes, including eating more frequent meals and avoiding high-carbohydrate loads at mealtimes.

What to Eat

According to the Mayo Clinic, reactive hypoglycemics should eat high-fiber foods, which include fruits such as raspberries and pears, whole-wheat pasta and bakery products, and a variety of beans and peas. In addition to increasing your fiber intake, look for products that state they are "low glycemic." Low glycemic foods, such as Ezekiel 4:9 flourless bread and Cliff Luna bars, release glucose over a longer period of time, enabling your body to avoid the blood-sugar highs and lows that are part of reactive hypoglycemia. Organic and vegan foods are often sweetened with agave syrup or evaporated cane syrup, which may not cause the blood-sugar spikes associated with sugar and high-fructose corn syrup.

How Often to Eat

You should eat as often as necessary to ward off blood-sugar lows. In general, reactive hypoglycemics need to eat at least every two or three hours to avoid blood-sugar crashes. The Mayo Clinic advocates eating several small meals instead of the usual three meals. You will need to adjust your caloric intake at each meal to account for having to eat more often. An easy way to do this is to eat half of your usual meal, and then eat the leftovers two hours later.

What to Avoid

Reactive hypoglycemics should avoid eating low-fiber, high-carbohydrate bakery products (including white bread plus all cakes and cookies), white pasta products, breakfast cereals containing sugar or high-fructose corn syrup (which includes nearly all breakfast cereals except plain oatmeal, Arrowhead Mills Kamut Flakes and Kashi Whole Grain Puffs), caffeinated beverages, soda, and potato chips. Swap out these products for their whole-grain, sugar-free counterparts, or do not eat them at all. Restaurant meals should be avoided unless you can confirm that the meal is sugar-free.

Read Your Labels

Learn to read the labels of everything you buy at the store. Many products contain high-fructose corn syrup and sugar, including cakes, cookies, soft drinks, snack bars and ice cream. However, unwanted ingredients can also be hidden in places you would least expect: prepackaged sushi, flavored vinegars, baked beans, dry-roasted peanuts and jarred salsas are just a few of the hundreds of items in grocery stores that are made with sugar and high-fructose corn syrup.

A Word on Low-Carb Diets

Although reactive hypoglycemics often experience violent symptoms after consuming high-carb meals, a low-carb diet isn't advised because carbohydrates are necessary for blood-sugar regulation. Instead, make sure your meals are balanced with regard to protein and carbs. For example, instead of just eating a handful of nuts for a snack (which are all protein and fat), add a small piece of fruit to add carbs and balance the meal.