Hi, My 6 yr old son has been complaining a lot lately about not feeling well, and being nauseous/sweaty, and feeling like he has to throw up. It doesn't happen all the time, but a few times in the past couple weeks. The color will just drain out of his face, along with his energy.

Because I have been watching my glucose levels for some health issues I am dealing with, I decided to test his. Here is the latest situation:

The last time he felt like this, I gave him a Capri Sun juice pack. After 1/2 hour, he was still feeling/looking the same, so I tested his blood. It was 66. My instincts tell me that that number is too low for a 6 yr old. In past times, it has been under 100, but never this low.

I'm concerned, but am I over reacting? It doesn't happen all the time, but my mom, paternal GM and mother in law were diabetic (adult onset) and I want to be on alert, without being a hypochondriac. If something is wrong, I want to catch it as early as possible. Should I bring him to the doctor yet, or wait to see what the numbers are if it happens again?
Thanks,
Sue

Hi,

Well money and time not an issue, yeah.
Get him to a physician and get a full blood workup done.

Sugars sure, but also request (and yeah, you have to request it!):
Triglyceride levels
Cholesterol
Potasium
Full liver panel
Iron
Phosphorus
A1C
B Vitamins
Std's
...at minimum.

If you are curious about blood sugar numbers test him:

6+ hours after last meal (normally first thing in the morning).
Just prior to eating
1 hour after a normal meal
2 hours after a normal meal
3 hours after a normal meal.
(minimum 4 times daily)

Records these numbers strictly for 7-10 days, and then you will know if he has a blood sugar issue or not. If you wish to, post the numbers back here and there are many who know here to help guide you.

This is normally a much longer conversation for me. But limiting sugars, (bad) fats and caffiene to a child is a good thing. ALL have cumulative effects through time. If a child eats healthy when young, they increase their odds of not being a sick adult. It's a fact.

I wish you and your son well!
~ Mark

I didn't get directly to the heart of your question. Sorry.

My answer is NO, DO NOT wait until he loses color again.

And if he truly was 66 (BS #) 30 mins following a standard juice pack - yeah for whatever reasons, he was not only crashing, but massively crashing. I don't know if you test correctly, or the test showed proper results which is why I recommended testing 4 times a day... and the timing of which is very specific. Please see the other post.

But do not wait on a 6 year old to lose color again. Get to the doctors and soon. And go in with NOTES as to not forget anything.

Oh, and so you should know, giving HIGH sugar foods to a diabetic (with hypoglycemia - high blood sugars) is a very LAST minute resort. I have personally watched 2 people have full seizures while trying to access a candy bar out of a machine. And seizures is very much life-threatening. Super high sugar foods to a diabetic is similar to beer for an alcoholic. If you ever again get to the point where you think you need to give your son an extremely high sugar dosage (like a juice pack), make certain that you IMMEDIATELY follow that with a full meal (complex carbs, vegetables, lots of water…).

I was grocery shopping once where my blood sugars dropped into the 50’s (far too low for me) and I couldn’t walk normally. Being where I was, I just slowly walked around and ate whole wheat bread and pickles until I felt much better. (I felt so bad too, and for me to approach a young employee to detail my problem in case I collapsed really was hard for me.)

There are some really sharp people here, like Ruth and Cora. Should you post numbers here, or anything diabetic related – there are many that will assist you with heart and a whole lot of knowledge.

Take your son in for bloodwork, and ask a lot of questions. Then if you wish ask a lot of questions here. :)

Best regards,
~ Mark

Ditto what Mark said. You know your child and if he loses color like that, there is something wrong. Get him checked and don't stop asking questions until you get a good answer.

Cora