Why Older People May Not Need to Watch Blood Sugar So Closely [View all]

Intensive management of diabetes pays fewer dividends as patients age and raises the chances of hypoglycemia. But many people have not gotten the message.

By now, Ora Larson recognizes what’s happening. “It feels like you’re shaking inside,” she said. “I’m speeded up. I’m anxious.” If someone asks whether she would like a salad for lunch, she doesn’t know how to respond.

She has had several such episodes this year, and they seem to be coming more frequently.

“She stares and gets a gray color and then she gets confused,” her daughter, Susan Larson, 61, said. “It’s really scary.”

Hypoglycemia occurs when levels of blood sugar, or glucose, fall too low; a reading below 70 milligrams per deciliter is an accepted definition. It can afflict anyone using glucose-lowering medications to control the condition.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/10/health/diabetes-blood-sugar-age.html?unlocked_article_code=1.AE8.guvd.K0HvwGgFBscP&smid=url-share