Michael was lucky; in the back of his mind was the fact that one of the early signs of Hypoglycemia, was slow-healing wounds. A visit to the doctor and a glucose test confirmed his suspicions. He was hypoglycemic, the early condition that more serious illnesses can develop into.

Hypoglycemics are people with low blood sugar levels. They tend to show other tell tale signs such as skipping breakfast. Or eating two or three large meals each day justified by being too busy to slow down. Or they show an indifference to a healthy good diet.

They sometimes suddenly feel dizzy, sweaty or nauseous or the colour will drain from their face. If they are at work, by morning tea they reach for a pastry, cake or sweets, usually with sugared up tea or coffee.

This morning ritual pours sugar into the bloodstream which triggers another flood - this time one of insulin. The over-reaction of insulin causes low levels of blood sugar. Later lethargy and fatigue set in. But in the mind of most people, there is no connection between fatigue and diet.

All these symptoms the body is able to cope with for years, albeit much like an engine permanently in third gear. So, why should you care about possibly changing your lifestyle and give thoughts to a balanced diet?

Quite simply because low blood sugar levels affect, among other things, the body's immune system and this leads on to major health problems:

* Heart disease

* Type 2 diabetes

* Stroke

* Obesity

* Syndrome X

The only way to get on top of these problems is to increase your knowledge of hypoglycemia and diet by reading up on the latest findings being constantly brought out. Without this knowledge you will not have the understanding and motivation to keep on the right diet plan.

These findings should be reasonably priced and fairly painless to learn. They should include knowledge as to:

* which ingredients can be lethal to hypoglycemics

* which products to avoid that can worsen your health

* the rules crucial to recovery from hypoglycemia and

* creating a food plan for vegetarian and non-vegetarian hypoglycemics.

Blood sugar has been a topic generally underestimated, if not ignored, by healthcare professionals and laymen alike, but as more and more knowledge is gained it is being taken very seriously.

In fact in the near future, if developments in California are any indication, people will begin to keep track of their blood sugar levels along with their cholesterol indicators.