When your blood sugar drops too low, eating 15 grams of fast-acting carbohydrates is the quickest way to bring it back up. That means something like half a cup of juice, a tablespoon of honey, or a few glucose tablets. For people with diabetes, low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) typically means a reading below 70 mg/dL. For people without diabetes, the threshold is lower, around 55 mg/dL. Either way, the treatment strategy is the same: get simple sugar into your system fast, wait, recheck, and then follow up with a balanced snack to keep levels steady.
How to Recognize a Low
Your body sends clear signals when blood sugar is dropping. The most common early signs are shakiness, sweating, and sudden hunger. You might also notice a fast heartbeat, dizziness, irritability, or difficulty concentrating. Some people feel tingling or numbness in their lips, tongue, or cheek. Fatigue and anxiety can show up too, sometimes before the more obvious physical symptoms. If you experience several of these at once, especially if you take insulin or diabetes medication, check your blood sugar and eat something right away.
Fast-Acting Foods That Raise Blood Sugar Quickly
The goal in the first few minutes is speed. You want simple sugars that hit your bloodstream as fast as possible, without fat, fiber, or protein slowing them down. The CDC recommends these options, each providing roughly 15 grams of carbohydrates:
- 4 ounces (half a cup) of fruit juice or regular soda (not diet)
- 1 tablespoon of sugar, honey, or syrup
- 3 to 4 glucose tablets
- 1 tube of glucose gel
- Hard candies, jellybeans, or gumdrops (check the label for serving size)
Liquids tend to work fastest. Juice and regular soda leave the stomach more quickly than solid food, which means the sugar reaches your bloodstream sooner. If you have a choice between juice and a handful of candy, juice will usually get your numbers moving first. Glucose tablets and gels are also designed for rapid absorption and have the advantage of precise dosing, so you know exactly how many grams you’re getting.
Why Chocolate and Fatty Foods Don’t Work
It’s tempting to reach for a chocolate bar or a cookie when your blood sugar crashes. But fat slows down digestion significantly, creating a delayed rise in blood sugar instead of the rapid spike you need. Protein and fiber have a similar effect. A candy bar coated in chocolate, a granola bar with nuts, or a glass of whole milk will all take longer to bring your levels up than plain juice or glucose tablets. Save those foods for later. In the moment, you want pure, fast sugar with nothing slowing it down.
The 15-15 Rule
The standard approach to treating a low is called the 15-15 rule: eat 15 grams of fast-acting carbohydrates, wait 15 minutes, then recheck your blood sugar. If it’s still below 70 mg/dL, eat another 15 grams and wait again. Repeat until your reading is back in a safe range.
This method keeps you from overcorrecting. When you feel shaky and hungry, the instinct is to eat everything in sight, but that can send your blood sugar soaring in the opposite direction. Sticking to 15 grams at a time and rechecking gives your body a chance to respond before you add more sugar.
What to Eat After Your Blood Sugar Stabilizes
Once your levels are back above 70 mg/dL, the fast-acting sugar you just ate will burn through quickly. Without a follow-up snack, your blood sugar can drop again within an hour or two. The key is to eat something that combines about 15 grams of complex carbohydrates with a source of protein. The carbs provide steady fuel, while the protein slows digestion and keeps your levels from crashing again.
Good follow-up snacks include:
- Half a sandwich with meat, cheese, or peanut butter
- A small piece of fruit with an ounce of cheese
- 8 animal crackers with 2 tablespoons of peanut butter
- 6 saltine crackers with a quarter cup of tuna salad
- 2 rice cakes with peanut butter
- 15 to 20 baked tortilla chips with refried beans
- 3 cups of plain popcorn with an ounce of nuts
If a full meal is coming within 30 to 60 minutes, you can skip the separate snack and just eat your meal. But if it’s going to be a while, don’t skip this step. The follow-up snack is what keeps you from cycling back into another low.
Keeping Supplies on Hand
The worst time to figure out what to eat for a low is while you’re having one. Brain fog, shaky hands, and poor concentration make it hard to think clearly, let alone rummage through a kitchen. Keep fast-acting sugar in multiple places: your nightstand, your car, your desk at work, your bag. Glucose tablets are ideal for this because they’re small, shelf-stable, and precisely dosed. A few juice boxes or individually wrapped hard candies work too.
At home, always have regular soda or juice available. It’s easy to accidentally stock only diet versions, which won’t help at all since they contain no sugar. If you use honey or table sugar, keep a measuring spoon nearby so you’re not guessing at portions when your hands are trembling. Planning ahead for lows, even if they don’t happen often, turns a potentially scary moment into a quick, routine fix.