Hypoglycemia: Portrait of an Illness Construct in Everyday Use

Most people suffer from multiple ill‐defined symptoms from time to time. In this article we consider some reasons why hypoglycemia may have gained widespread lay acceptance in the United States as an explanation for such symptoms. The discussion focuses on how the hypoglycemia construct links the interpretation of symptoms to the cultural milieu in which they are experienced. A group of 12 informants, either self‐diagnosed or diagnosed by physicians as hypoglycemic, were followed over a 14‐week period, and their varied and changing interpretations of hypoglycemia were examined. We suggest that because the construct of hypoglycemia is ambiguous, it is amenable to a wide range of idiosyncratic applications and understandings. Moreover, through reference to two potent cultural symbols, eating and stress, hypoglycemia appears to offer a ready field for symbolic expressions of issues of personal control, a key theme in American society. Though these tentative findings concern only hypoglycemia, we suggest that ambiguity and cultural meaningfulness are essential for any illness to attain widespread lay acceptance.