Hi all really would appreciate some feedback, re: Can low blood sugar trigger afib? Just looking for some explanations not medical advice because something must be triggering these attacks and I suspect that low blood sugar might be possible culprit that might need investigation.Most of my AFib attacks occur when I get out of bed in the morning which happened yet again today. Hence did not get a chance to eat anything but had water. AF can last beyond two days sometimes, so yet to see how long this attack lasts for. Got an appointment with a private cardiologist tonight at 6pm so can't chance going to a+e at present. Hopefully, I will run suspected low blood sugar theory by him.
My fitbit shows peak cardio activity along with cardio exercise mode HR peaking to 165 while laying on my bed. If I attempt to walk about get that grabbing pain in middle of chest, so have to wait, God knows how long, for AF to drop down to more comfortable level before I can manage to eat some food.
Had lots of blood tests via a+e plus GP with no red flags for diabetes.
Would love to hear some of your comments
Have a rewarding day
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DizzyD
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wondering this too… I have slightly high blood sugar and reactive hypoglycemia… ablation and medication didn’t work we are now looking into underlying conditions.
Hi Afib_girl hope you find some answers or explanations when delving into underlying conditions. It's a bit of a puzzle isn't it. Hope I'm time you are able to connect some pieces of the jigsaw. Good luck and Thank you for your most welcome comment.
I would suggest it’s more likely that it’s change of position or low BP. When you see your cardiologist do ask about possible reasons and Autonomic Response to change of position.
Try to rise slowly and very gradually and see if that makes a difference.
What is your blood sugar level in the morning? Do you monitor your levels? Without knowing I don’t think anyone could possible say but you could try taking an oat biscuit to bed to eat first thing in the morning to see if that helps - if it does it may be a clue.
Autonomic Response to change of position..Never heard of this but what you have suggested resonates with me so it could be a possible explanation. Over the few months, upon getting out of bed, I made a conscious choice to do so very slowly and I had idea why I was doing such very slowly. Perhaps, my subconscious was telling me something and now you mention Autonomic Response....fascinating. Thank you most sincerely.
CDreamer Thank you for the link. POTS??? Didn't say anything about POTS triggering AFib though. This morning before rising out of bed HR was 75. Rose from bed very slowly. With snail like movement took a few steps, HR shot up to 110. Stayed rooted to spot for about minute HR dropped to 80. Walked downstairs checked HR 88.Normally, I would have been unaware of increase in HR (110) and continued with activities unaware that AFib was about to make its presence known.
The upside is, do believe AFib attack was averted this morning thanks to your help and support. Real appreciate this. NSR so far.
Downside is: another label to add to my list but hey ho, now know what I need to do in order to avoid AFib attack when I rise in the morning.
Self diagnosed POTS. Will run this by cardiologist next week.
Tilt Table test will give a PoTS diagnosis, most of the major hospitals will have one. Suggest you read the literature on the website link I gave you and then make a list of questions to ask.
This was one of the things I thought I had before I was diagnosed with afib. Amongst others like low blood pressure .ect. since diagnosis I've came to the conclusion there is no set trigger for me. Sometimes its during the night, first thing getting up. Posture movement,eating a meal. Quite random. But especially stress and anxiety. If you have chest pain in go to a and e.
Tommyboy21 sure I have had some random attacks of AFib in the past due to various reasons which I have not even considered. Stress and anxiety also plays a part which is why I have adapted my life to make improvements to avoid stressful situations if at all possible. But still we are bound to have some unforeseen stress and anxiety in our lives that is inevitable. Given CDreamer comment above I am gearing towards change of posture explanation. Had far too many AFib flair ups as soon as I rise out of bed and ended up at a+e. Thank you most sincerely for your valuable reply.
Someone posted the "One-and-a-Half -Minute law' evidently made by a cardiologist:
When you wake up to go to the bathroom, you must first "stay lying down for 30 seconds" and then "sit in bed for 30 more seconds" lower your legs quietly and "sit on the end of the bed for another 30 seconds" and only then get up.
The comment related to strokes but it would do no harm for you to try it. It makes common sense to me so I practice it every time now.
I think so, yes. I had a 2 week access to a blood sugar monitor as part of the Zoe nutrition Programme I signed up for. I spotted some worrying peaks and troughs in my blood glucose through the App that comes with the monitor. I was ablated earlier this year so no AF thankfully but the lows triggered palpitations and ectopics. I'm pretty sure this was the reason for at least some of my apparently random post prandial events - 2-3 hours after a meal. I'll look up the name of the monitor. I don't know what it costs overall to sign up but the delivery itself is £50 for 2 weeks. Might be worth investing in to check what's going on. The cheaper way of course is to have something that is easy carbohydrate by your bed to eat on waking. Not too sugary though. Overnight oats, with fruit and nuts perhaps? Or perhaps some dried apricots to chew on. See what others say - quite a few are knowledgeable about food impact.
You can buy a blood sugar monitor at Boots or on the internet for less than that. It is not necessary to sign up to Zoe. Is the Zoe one a continuous monitor or the regular finger prick type?
It’s a continuous one but without coming under the Zoe app you need a referral from GP. The pin prick ones will do just as well but more faffy to use whereas the continuous ones do everything automatically. The only morning dip I had was day after night before when I’d had sugary dessert - otherwise my profile was text book perfect. It was clearing fat I had the problem with……..
Thanks, I didn't know that about the libre app. Must order an update before my Zoe sub runs out. Want to see how I'm doing now I've adjusted my eating habits.
You can do an approximation of this on the cheap with a finger stick monitoring. Obviously you don’t get the accuracy or the full picture that a CGM would give you, but for me it would drive me mental to have a CGM with my orthorexic past. I know it would put me back in that disordered eating/thinking space that I had to work so hard to rid myself of. But for a normal person ie not prone to all that disorder-y thinking it’s probably a great experiment and may well result in very helpful health information.
The device is called freestyle libre and is available in the UK. You get neat little patch with a tiny needle sensor and you scan it with your phone. It's very cool!
Thank you Singwell for your comments. In all honesty, have come to suspect that I have POTS which is causing a fib attacks. That's not to say I will ignore blood glucose issue. Freestyle Libre sounds interesting. My only concern would be the accuracy of this device. Will look it.
Yes, I saw CDreamer's response and it looked sensible. I think the Libre Freestyle is reliable, or the Zoe people wouldn't be using it. Hope you get it sorted
Hi DD - it's my experience that being hungry can trigger ectopic beats, and I know that, in prone individuals, these can set off AF.
The cause might be low blood sugar or, and perhaps more likely, some physical aspect related to the stomach and heart themselves. The stomach is situated just below the heart with the thin sheet of the diaphragm in between; any movement of the stomach, especially if bloated, can be indirectly transmitted through to the heart, which can cause ectopic beats to form. For me, this explains why ectopics, racing and even AF can be caused by the oddest things such as stretching, bending, hunger, windiness, constipation, and so on. I've always preferred this view than seeking out unlikely "triggers" from food ingredients and similar. A cardiologist told me of this when I first started with ectopics in my late 20s and an X-ray then showed my stomach pushing my heart northwards!
I had a chest X ray recently to do with a small nodule I've got on my left lung. The consultant was good enough to take me through what he saw on the X ray including a bit of my heart poking out the bottom. I was amazed at how low the heart is and, as you say, very near the stomach. I thought it was up by the collar bone. Explains a lot.
Yes - same here. My diaphragm on the left side was strangely bumpy, too, quite unlike the smooth right hand side, and it was very clearly touching the bottom of my heart. Apparently the heart can react to being pressed or stretched in this way by creating an ectopic beat and it is those that can set off AF.
I haven’t been able to find a great deal about this online although there are a few mentions. I have my suspicions it’s far more common than people think .
I've come to the conclusion anything can cause A fib. I had a short bout one night last week which I've put down to too much sugar! I had a bit of a blow out in the late afternoon followed by a Kitkat at 7pm. I think sugar makes me dream a lot which can cause me to wake with a start and then A fib can kick in.
I had not thought about low blood sugar as a trigger for AF. I was getting AF in night or first thing in morning. I changed sleeping position but also started having as a late night drink a blueberry and banana smoothie. The night time occurrences have stopped. Last Friday for various reasons I missed breakfast and lunch. I had an AF episode about 1.30pm. I am pre-diabetic.
I now sleep on right side because the heart is situated slightly left of the chest. Laying on the left may exacerbate AF, this was confirmed by my consultant.
I don’t think I recognise this pattern in my own experience of AF but I do have migraine with visual aura and that mostly happens when I haven’t eaten for a few hours and it has happened first thing before breakfast on several occasions. So I do believe that low blood sugar can trigger the body into misfiring at times. Some good suggestions here. It’s worth experimenting to see if you find something that helps.
Certainly back when I had AF too often, I believed that being hungry was a 'trigger'. However, sometimes I could be hungry without going into AF. I then thought maybe it was the stress brought on by being hungry was to blame. Eventually, I gave up looking for 'triggers' and stopped believing in them entirely. Nothing was consistent, and I'd go into AF with no obvious cause at all.
Thankfully, I'm now 7 months past my last AF session, 17 months since my ablation, and I'm hoping it's now a 'fix'. Not counting it as a cure though, I know there is NO cure.
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