Always feeling cold and increased thirst

[Ellen B]

My 12 yr old with type 1 in very good control has lately always been cold (even on the hottest of days) and increased thirst. Her blood sugar numbers are consistently good as she is on a pump. She has also lost some weight but her appetite is quite good. Its almost the same as when she was first diagnosed. any ideas of what we should be looking for? thanks

[JDRF-Team-JW]

Hi Ellen,

As you're probably aware we are not physicians on this forum, so it's not possible for us to give you a diagnosis of what's going on with your daughter. I'm not sure what could be causing these symptoms you're describing. They do sound like those appearing when one is first diagnosed with Type I diabetes. Possibly some of these symptoms could've been due to increased summer ativity and the heat (such as increased thirst and losing wieght despite a good appetite), however I don't know what would've cause the cold sensation on a hot day. It's great that your daughter is keeping her sugars under control. I'm on the pump myslef and that has also helped me a great deal. My suggestion is for you to take your daughter to her doctor and discuss these symptoms with him/her. Sorry I couldn't be more of a help. Good luck!

[galzee]

Hi Ellen!  Has your daughter had her thyroid function checked lately?  Just a thought as 1 in 3 diabetics can have a malfunctioning thyroid.  It's a routine blood test that should be done once a year if diabetic.  You definitely should check with her endocrinologist and let them know how she's been feeling.  Best of luck...

[JDRF Team SGG]

I agree with the previous posting about having her thyroid levels checked. Here is another comment, about something you both probably have already checked, but I mention it just in case you haven't. Feeling cold for no reason AND having dry mouth and eyes (which can feel sort of like being thirsty) for me are definite symptoms of low blood sugar. I have babysat small children who also complain of being cold when hypoglycemic. So you might want to check glucose often to just make sure that the good control is not causing frequent minor hypo situations. Just a simple thing to rule out. The dry mouth when I am low can feel very much like the thirst of high glucose. None of this would of course explain weight loss... the thyroid probably should be checked, no matter what.