Re: Insulin issues and Blood Sugars

[Guest guest]

Hi Charlene,

Well, to be honest, this is a complicated thing to understand. My

son, has had blood sugar issues since birth, but ONLY when he

doesn't eat within a certain period of time. Right now, it is about

every four hours at THE MOST! Some kids are less, some are more.

Most of it depends on the fat stores. And, this is why you see so

many people on here talking about the weight for height charts. It

is said by Dr. Harbison that the children should stay within the 10th

to 25th percentile on this chart. That helps a lot with maintaining

a good body proportion which will help with the blood sugar. You

want to have fat stores because this will help the body be able to

keep the blood sugars up. But, if the child is too chubby, you get

the insulin resistance issue and your child becomes like a type 2

diabetic of sorts. It is a very fine line for these kids.

You just want to make sure your child eats often. If you are unsure

if Will (I think that is right) has blood sugar issues, it may be a

good idea to have him checked or buy a glucometer. The tendency for

these kids, if they go a long period of time without eating, their

blood sugar tends to get low. Or, if you give them too much sugar

without adding carbs and protein, I think it is, then they may have

higher blood sugar. The thing I have always done, is to make sure

eats often. And, I have been known to ask Dr. Harbison how

long is safe without eating. Four hours is our mark now, and

I know at 4 1/2 hours, he is on the low end of what these kids should

be at. Dr. H. says to keep them between 80 and 120. Anything lower

or higher than that is not good. When the kids are sick, they tend

to have blood sugar issues as well because they lean more towards not

wanting to eat. We had to take to the ER once when he was

really sick and not being tube fed, and he ended up with a sugar

level of less than 20 if you can imagine. It was awful and he was

very unresponsive. But, that is something that doesn't happen very

often. So, just watch his behavior and look for fussiness or

behavior that is abnormal. Some parents say that their children

don't have blood sugar issues. But, just watch him and do waht you

feel is best. I would lean more towards testing him after he hasn't

eaten in a while to see waht his blood sugar reading is. If he is

between the 80 and 120 parameters, then you are okay. But, also be

aware that is they are on the lower side, they do tend to drop

quickly.

I hope I have helped you some. I know it is a lot of information.

And, hopefully others can help too. Since has been tube fed

since birth, I rarely had to worry about BS issues, but now that he

is off the tube all day, I have to watch him as I know he does have

the instability. Now, he has the insulin resistance because his

weight for height is way too high for him. He is at the 25%, but

that has proved to be too heavy for him. He needs to be at about the

10th. So, each child will be different there, too. That is why I

love Dr. H. Without her wouldn't be doing as well as he is.

My biased opinion!

HTH,

Jodi R.

>

> Can someone get me up to speed on the insulin issues that are faced

by

> a RSS kid? I'm also perplexed around the information regarding

blood

> sugars - what exactly is the tendancy, high or low, or both?

Charlene

>

[Guest guest]

I want to buy a glucometer and I see them for sale, but some are so

expensive and some are very inexpensive. Is there a certain kind to

get that works the best???

Thanks!

mom to Autumn RSS 24 mos. SUmmer SGA poss RSS 6.5 mos Ocean

3.5 yrs, Skye 7.5 Yrs

> >

> > Can someone get me up to speed on the insulin issues that are

faced

> by

> > a RSS kid? I'm also perplexed around the information regarding

> blood

> > sugars - what exactly is the tendancy, high or low, or both?

> Charlene

> >

>

[Guest guest]

,

I have the Accu-Check Compact meter. It is the one with green

lettering. I really like it and I have heard that it is one of the

easiest to use, and it uses only a little bit of blood. And, you

have the option of using several other sites to check the sugar. Not

just the finger. I have used it on myself to see how bad it hurts.

Not bad at all. And, I was brave doing this. I hate needles. Let

me stress HATE! ;o)

Jodi R.

> > >

> > > Can someone get me up to speed on the insulin issues that are

> faced

> > by

> > > a RSS kid? I'm also perplexed around the information regarding

> > blood

> > > sugars - what exactly is the tendancy, high or low, or both?

> > Charlene

> > >

> >

>

[Guest guest]

>

> I want to buy a glucometer and I see them for sale, but some are so

> expensive and some are very inexpensive. Is there a certain kind to

> get that works the best???

The older models of Lifescan's " One Touch " are really very accurate.

It requires more blood than the newer models, but the difference in

accuracy is amazing. I've gone through two of the newer model One

Touch Ultra, which have been notoriously inaccurate. As an example,

two days ago I registered blood sugars of 253. A lab sample showed

190. (My husband is a med tech and frequently monitors my diabetes).

Anyway, there's a HUGE difference between 253 and 190. I am really

disappointed. I've had my Ultra replaced once and will do so again,

or go back to my old, clunky one.

Dianne - Ian's grandmother

[Guest guest]

- I like my Accucheck. It was $65. The test strips are

what are really expensive. 2 bottles are about $98 - I fortunately

get them through insurance for free - but, I'm only allowed a

certain allotment.

- H

> > >

> > > Can someone get me up to speed on the insulin issues that are

> faced

> > by

> > > a RSS kid? I'm also perplexed around the information

regarding

> > blood

> > > sugars - what exactly is the tendancy, high or low, or both?

> > Charlene

> > >

> >

>

[Guest guest]

The One Touch Ultra is another one that I have at home as well - and

I have not had any issues with it thus far. The hospital gave us

two of those at two separate hospital stays. I purchased the

Accucheck as I mentioned previously - sorry - it was merely based on

looks! LOL

Keep us posted on your decision!

- H

> >

> > I want to buy a glucometer and I see them for sale, but some are

so

> > expensive and some are very inexpensive. Is there a certain

kind to

> > get that works the best???

>

>

> The older models of Lifescan's " One Touch " are really very

accurate.

> It requires more blood than the newer models, but the difference in

> accuracy is amazing. I've gone through two of the newer model One

> Touch Ultra, which have been notoriously inaccurate. As an

example,

> two days ago I registered blood sugars of 253. A lab sample showed

> 190. (My husband is a med tech and frequently monitors my

diabetes).

> Anyway, there's a HUGE difference between 253 and 190. I am

really

> disappointed. I've had my Ultra replaced once and will do so

again,

> or go back to my old, clunky one.

>

> Dianne - Ian's grandmother

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks . How's Ian?

> > > >

> > > > Can someone get me up to speed on the insulin issues that are

> > faced

> > > by

> > > > a RSS kid? I'm also perplexed around the information

> regarding

> > > blood

> > > > sugars - what exactly is the tendancy, high or low, or both?

> > > Charlene

> > > >

> > >

> >

>