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Teen Low Blood Sugar - Passed Out
My 15 year old daughter has been feeling light headed most mornings and some afternoon/evenings. She went to her 9am annual physical last month and passed out 5 minutes after the nurse drew two small tubes of blood for CBC & Chlosterol check. She was with the nurse at the time, and luckly was caught before she hit the floor. She was pretty much out of commission for the rest of the day. It took her about a half hour for her color to come back and had a terrible headache and very fatigued for the remainder of the afternoon (she slept for over 3 hours when we got back home).
Because she had shown signs of light headedness prior to this passing out episode I requested the doctor add a blood sugar test to her blood work (she had not eaten since the night before).
After waiting a month for the results, I assumed that there were no problems since I had not heard from the doctor or a nurse on the matter. However, two days ago I was in with another childs annual physical and asked for copies of my eldests results. I was a little shocked to see the results of the glucose test showing 58 C (results legend listed C=Critical). I immediately contacted the doctor to ask what this meant for my daughter and whether we should do further testing. His reply was that although low, he was not too concerned. He recommended my daughter eat more frequently and smaller portions. And we would from now on test annually her sugars.
I have been researching hypoglycemia on the web and find that the doctors lack of information for me left me with a very bad taste in my mouth. Most articles out there, including all the reputable sights indicate that Hypoglycemia is often the result of something more and very rarely is its own problem. So my questions are:
Should I get a second opinion?
Should I be concerned that my 15 year old will soon be driving and will not have another test of her sugar levels for another year?
Additional information:
There is no family history on mother or fathers side of diabetes. She is 5'3 110 lbs, very active girl. She was generally skipping breakfast, eating smaller lunch at school, large after school meal and large dinners. We have changed to more frequent smaller meals with low sugar content & more protein, and she keeps packets of sugar with her at school now just in case she feels faint.
Any thoughts on this topic would be greatly appreciated. I have never gone 'against' my family doctor and wonder if I am just over reacting to the overload of information I read on the web (vs. no information given by doctor).
Because she had shown signs of light headedness prior to this passing out episode I requested the doctor add a blood sugar test to her blood work (she had not eaten since the night before).
After waiting a month for the results, I assumed that there were no problems since I had not heard from the doctor or a nurse on the matter. However, two days ago I was in with another childs annual physical and asked for copies of my eldests results. I was a little shocked to see the results of the glucose test showing 58 C (results legend listed C=Critical). I immediately contacted the doctor to ask what this meant for my daughter and whether we should do further testing. His reply was that although low, he was not too concerned. He recommended my daughter eat more frequently and smaller portions. And we would from now on test annually her sugars.
I have been researching hypoglycemia on the web and find that the doctors lack of information for me left me with a very bad taste in my mouth. Most articles out there, including all the reputable sights indicate that Hypoglycemia is often the result of something more and very rarely is its own problem. So my questions are:
Should I get a second opinion?
Should I be concerned that my 15 year old will soon be driving and will not have another test of her sugar levels for another year?
Additional information:
There is no family history on mother or fathers side of diabetes. She is 5'3 110 lbs, very active girl. She was generally skipping breakfast, eating smaller lunch at school, large after school meal and large dinners. We have changed to more frequent smaller meals with low sugar content & more protein, and she keeps packets of sugar with her at school now just in case she feels faint.
Any thoughts on this topic would be greatly appreciated. I have never gone 'against' my family doctor and wonder if I am just over reacting to the overload of information I read on the web (vs. no information given by doctor).
This sounds like me when I was her age. I am 29 now.
It is difficult for busy, and growing(!), teens. I, too, would pass out at the doctors...from blood pricks, allergy testing. From now on, I ask ahead of time if I can lay down while they take blood. It helps.
Encourage her to eat breakfast and to keep snacks in her backpack, purse, and locker. Be careful with the sugar as this can cause an increase in the blood sugar, but then you risk a bigger drop in your blood sugar level once the insulin reacts to it and can make things worse.
I need at least something about every 2 -3 hours. My current fav is Erin Bakker's organic mini-cookies - they have whole grains (take longer to process and break down) and all organic ingrediants. I keep saltines in my car. And crackers and nuts at work.
I would only be concerned about her driving if she has a history of a hypoglemic shock. For now, encourage her to identify early symptoms (ranging from moodiness, nausea, dizziness, sweating, shaking, lack of concentration) so she can become proficient in taking care of herself and knowing when to step away from activities and get some calories in her.
Best of luck!
It is difficult for busy, and growing(!), teens. I, too, would pass out at the doctors...from blood pricks, allergy testing. From now on, I ask ahead of time if I can lay down while they take blood. It helps.
Encourage her to eat breakfast and to keep snacks in her backpack, purse, and locker. Be careful with the sugar as this can cause an increase in the blood sugar, but then you risk a bigger drop in your blood sugar level once the insulin reacts to it and can make things worse.
I need at least something about every 2 -3 hours. My current fav is Erin Bakker's organic mini-cookies - they have whole grains (take longer to process and break down) and all organic ingrediants. I keep saltines in my car. And crackers and nuts at work.
I would only be concerned about her driving if she has a history of a hypoglemic shock. For now, encourage her to identify early symptoms (ranging from moodiness, nausea, dizziness, sweating, shaking, lack of concentration) so she can become proficient in taking care of herself and knowing when to step away from activities and get some calories in her.
Best of luck!
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