Diabetes affects all age groups including children. Diabetes in children is increasing at an alarming rate and calls a lot of concern.
Diabetes in children is not much associated with weight. In many children below fifteen years diabetes appears suddenly. Early diagnosis and treatment of diabetes in children is very important. The goal of the treatment is to achieve normal physical, mental and emotional growth of the child.
The onset of diabetes in children is acute or sub-acute. The course of the disease varies from few hours to few weeks.
Symptoms of Diabetes in Children
Some of the main symptoms of diabetes in children may include:
- Passage of excess urine that may cause bed-wetting and thirst are the initial symptoms.
- The development of the child maybe slower than other children and the child shows a lazy attitude.
- Abdominal pain, vomiting, dehydration and acidosis may develop gradually.
- The diabetic child loses weight and looks lean.
- He is prone to respiratory and other infections.
- Toxins build-up in the blood and make it acidic (keto-acidosis).
- Breath is sweet smelling and skin and tongue become dry.
- The child feels drowsy, Blood Pressure is low, pulse becomes weak and child may go into a semi-conscious or unconscious state in advanced stages.
If pancreas is not able to produce the enough insulin, it leads to high sugar level in blood, you may want to read what are the other causes of diabetes in children.
What Causes Diabetes In Children?
Diabetes in children may be due to a number of reasons, here are a few common ones:
- Family history and Role-played by Heredity
Diabetes in children occurs due to genetic factors and so heredity plays an important role. Certain viruses combine with inherited susceptibility and develop diabetes. Children can develop diabetes after mumps in occasional cases. Diabetes mellitus in children maybe associated with environmental factors also.
Children with increased growth rates in their first three years are also at a greater risk of developing diabetes. These children usually have a tendency of becoming over-weight in their first year than other children.
- Food Allergy
Food allergy also causes diabetes in children. In genetically prone children, drinking cow’s milk during infancy may cause type-1 diabetes in later life. If infants are kept away from dairy products during the first year it may save many of them from diabetes. Certain proteins in cow’s milk provide antigen that forces the immune system to attack its own tissues. So the secretion of insulin by beta cells in the pancreas is affected. Thereby if there is a diabetic history in the family avoid cow’s milk.
Breast Feeding Protects Infants
Infants who are breastfed and kept away from cow’s milk for long periods are less likely to develop diabetes. Research has proved that infants who are exclusively breastfed during first three months have forty percent reduced chances of developing diabetes by around fourteen years of age. Chances of developing diabetes can be reduced further by avoiding cow’s milk for longer periods.
- Related Topics
- Diabetes In Children: Types And Symptoms Of Diabetes Mellitus
- Blood Sugar Levels in Children: Glucose levels of children & Diabetes
- Childhood Diabetes: Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus in Children
- Signs and Symptoms of Type 1 Diabetes in children: thirst, urination, weakness, cramps
- Causes of Diabetes : Factors that Develop Diabetes
My 5 year old son after urination, big ants surrounded the urine. However, my son is very active, naughty, sharp minded and body weight is about 24 kgs. Is this the primary symptom of diabetes in my child.
Juvenile diabetes is a misnomer because it is now called type 1 diabetes mellitus. Type 1 diabetes requires insulin injection for survival. As the insulin production of the pancreas is negligible. The symptoms of type 1 diabetes are ;
- Sudden on set of fever.
- Altered consciousness. or loss of consciousness.
- Dehydration.
- Breathing trouble.
- Weight loss
- Increased urination and thirst.
- Increased appetite.
Patient may have ketone in urine.
Type 2 diabetes children may require insulin for some time only.
A common question frequently asked by young diabetic children is ‘why me’?
Let us understand that certain things are not in our control. Juvenile diabetes is one of the few such diseases.
Type 1 diabetes i.e. diabetes occurring in children’s or young adults where the beta cells of the pancreas which secretes insulin, is non functional or it produces insulin in negligible quantity.
The onset of type 1 diabetes is very sudden, acute symptoms like;
Fever, altered consciousness, breathing difficulty, weight loss,
Increased thirst, frequency of urination, increased appetite, repeated infection, may be present, ketone bodies in the urine are present.
This are the few symptoms helpful to us in diagnosing children having diabetes, of course blood sugar level is the concluding evidence above all.