Jump to content
This site uses cookies. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. More Info... ×

  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):

    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Daughter Has Acetone Breath

celiacgirls

By celiacgirls
in Related Issues & Disorders

Recommended Posts

celiacgirls Apprentice
celiacgirls
Posted

This past weekend, my 8 year old daughter was complaining that she was always thirsty. Then on Tuesday, my husband noticed she had acetone breath. She has had it before, last January, and they did the blood sugar test in the pediatrician's office and it was fine. They said her bad breath could be from not brushing her teeth properly. I don't really buy that but it did go away until now. She had just brushed her teeth when my husband noticed it. Because of the increased thirst and the acetone breath, I have her scheduled for the blood test again on Monday, when her doctor gets back from vacation.

Are there any other causes of acetone breath that aren't related to diabetes? Even if her blood sugar is ok, could this be a sign she is at risk of diabetes?

I'm already expecting the doctor to think I'm just an overzealous mom. I did tell her the girls are on a gluten-free/CF diet due to Enterolab and she didn't seem overly interested one way or the other, so maybe there is hope she will be ok with this.

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


CarlaB Enthusiast
CarlaB
Posted

I don't know about acetone breath, but I notice my kids get very bad breath even right after they've brushed if they have loose teeth, even slightly loose, it's like you can smell the root rotting away.

I'd still have her checked out to be sure, but it's not unusual for a kid to have bad breath.

2kids4me Contributor
2kids4me
Posted

This is an excellent link that discusses why a non-diabetic child may have acetone breath.

Open Original Shared Link

a bit from that link:

My six year old adopted son has had acetone breath consistently for several weeks. I've tested his urine with the strips for glucose and ketones twice, and they are both negative. He has had this previously only when he was slightly dehydrated from bouts of nausea and vomiting. He is otherwise perfectly healthy and active and has no symptoms of diabetes. We have a dog with diabetes which is why I am familiar with the signs and the breath odor and have the urine strips. Are there other causes of acetone breath in an otherwise normal six year old? In view of the negative strips should I still have his blood glucose tested?

Answer:

Not everyone can smell acetone, but if you can, the most sensitive vehicle is the breath which may explain why urine testing has been negative. Ketosis in children can occur when the body is unable to get sufficient basal energy needs from the metabolism of carbohydrate and resorts to the breakdown of fat stores with the production of ketones. This can occur because of diabetes, but, as you have noticed, this is most likely to occur when appetite is diminished by intercurrent illness. The same can happen if energy consumption is increased and a child is too busy to eat sufficiently.

I think it very unlikely that what you describe has anything to do with diabetes, but if you have a diabetic dog and the means of measuring blood sugars you might test your son after a period of energetic activity to see if it is low because the phenomenon I have described is called ketotic hypoglycemia.

celiacgirls Apprentice
celiacgirls
Posted
  • Author

Thanks. I'm glad to know there are other causes. I think I will get some of those test strips so I can test her when it happens.

prinsessa Contributor
prinsessa
Posted

My kids get Acetone breath once in a while. I actually posted about this on this board before. My DD usually only has it when she is sick (and not eating much), but my DS has it a lot more often. I just found out that both of them are gluten intolerant. I wonder if my DS was getting acetone breath because he wasn't absorbing enough nutrients (he is also very skinny). I was also thinking about testing him with strips when I smell his breath like that. Diabetes (both type 1 and 2) run on DH's side of the family. I know children who have diabetes usually get sick really fast, but I still can't help but worry a little. I sure he is fine, but I still worry.

2kids4me Contributor
2kids4me
Posted

any person, child or adult that has acetone breath as result of diabetic ketoacidosis is very sick and would be diagnosed quickly - becasue the symptoms would have you in the ER. Vomiting, stomach pain, pale, rapid repsiration, very sluggish, very thirsty / peeing alot and the synptoms would not improve or go away and then come back.

There are other reasons for acetone on the breath (as mentioned in previuous post). Try not to worry. If the child is wanting to eat, chattering away, and interested in things going on around them, picking fights with siblings - then it is not diabetes.

My son was diagnosed with diabetes at age 9 and he wasnt even ketoacidotic yet. The peeing/drinking fatigue precedes the acidosis stage. Even without acetone breath it was clear that something was terribly wrong.

  • 7 years later...
Kim miller Newbie
Kim miller
Posted

My daughter had that off and on for 20 yrs.  We finally went to a gastroenterologist who did a hydrogen breath test and then tested her for H. Pylori bacteria which came back positive.  She was put on antibiotics and then heavy doses of acidopholis for years.  When we finally found out she had Celiac and she went gluten free, it went away completely.   It's is such a social problem for someone at any age. Hope this helps!

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


kareng Grand Master
kareng
Posted

My daughter had that off and on for 20 yrs.  We finally went to a gastroenterologist who did a hydrogen breath test and then tested her for H. Pylori bacteria which came back positive.  She was put on antibiotics and then heavy doses of acidopholis for years.  When we finally found out she had Celiac and she went gluten free, it went away completely.   It's is such a social problem for someone at any age. Hope this helps!

 

 

Just an FYI - you are responding to a post from 2006.  The poster hasn't been on since 2008

GFinDC Veteran
GFinDC
Posted

My daughter had that off and on for 20 yrs.  We finally went to a gastroenterologist who did a hydrogen breath test and then tested her for H. Pylori bacteria which came back positive.  She was put on antibiotics and then heavy doses of acidopholis for years.  When we finally found out she had Celiac and she went gluten free, it went away completely.   It's is such a social problem for someone at any age. Hope this helps!

 

Hi Kim,

 

If the h. pylori does come back someday, you can try some natural treatments for it.  DGL and mastic gum are two natural treatments that help.

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Join eNewsletter
    Donate
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):



    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):



  • Recent Activity

    1. knitty kitty
      - knitty kitty replied to Rejoicephd's topic in Post Diagnosis, Recovery & Treatment of Celiac Disease
      13

      Struggling to get into a good pattern

      @Rejoicephd, Would you consider adding a B Complex to your supplements? I was taking a multivitamin and still became deficient. There's a question as to how well multivitamins dissolve in the digestive system. I found taking a B Complex and Benfotiamine, a form of thiamine shown to promote intestinal healing, very beneficial in my recovery...
    2. knitty kitty
      - knitty kitty replied to kopiq's topic in Post Diagnosis, Recovery & Treatment of Celiac Disease
      4

      almost a year in recovery - so many questions about to give up

      @kopiq, Your case is not hopeless. Doctors are not required to learn much about nutrition. Celiac Disease causes damage to the lining of the small intestines resulting in malabsorption of essential vitamins and minerals. The eight essential B vitamins and the four fat soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K) are chemical compounds that our bodies...
    3. Rejoicephd
      - Rejoicephd replied to Rejoicephd's topic in Post Diagnosis, Recovery & Treatment of Celiac Disease
      13

      Struggling to get into a good pattern

      Thank you @cristiana. Its really helpful to hear your experience, thanks for sharing. 8 years is a long time! And its also good to know that others have experienced worsening before it gets better. I've just started doing the food diary recently, and I'll keep that going. It's at least helping me try to get a handle on this, and also helps increase my...
    4. trents
      - trents replied to junell's topic in Related Issues & Disorders
      1

      Help!

      Yes, the development of additional food intolerances is a common spinoff of celiac disease. To ensure valid testing after beginning a "gluten challenge" you would need to be consuming at least 10g of gluten daily (about the amount in 4-6 slices of wheat bread) for at least two weeks. Many cannot follow through with this regimen, however, as their intolerance...
    5. junell
      - junell posted a topic in Related Issues & Disorders
      1

      Help!

      I've been gluten free for 5 years, as well as being intolerant to gluten, my list of intolerances is growing.. from dairy, eggs, soya, yeast, to mushroom, garlic, onion, spinach and quite a few in-between, basically my diet is gluten-free cornflakes, rice, banana, almond milk and fish anything else causes bloating, severe abdominal pain, mucousy diarrhoea...
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):


  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      130,648
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    Livinonaprayer
    Newest Member
    Livinonaprayer
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.3k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):


  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • knitty kitty
      Struggling to get into a good pattern

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      @Rejoicephd, Would you consider adding a B Complex to your supplements?   I was taking a multivitamin and still became deficient.  There's a question as to how well multivitamins dissolve in the digestive system.   I found taking a B Complex and Benfotiamine, a form of thiamine shown to promote intestinal healing, very beneficial in my recovery.   Some B Complex supplements use Thiamine Mononitrate which is not well absorbed nor utilized by the body.  Thiamine Hydrochloride is better.  Benfotiamine is easily absorbed.  If not needed, the B vitamins are easily excreted. High B12 out of the blue could be masking a lack of other vitamins that work with B12, like Folate B 9, Pyridoxine B 6, and Thiamine B 1. Meats and liver are great sources of B vitamins.  B vitamins are needed to make digestive enzymes that digest protein, fats, and carbohydrates.   Do keep in mind that most gluten free processed facsimile foods are not required to be enriched with vitamins and minerals lost in processing like their gluten containing counterparts.  The more carbohydrates you eat, the more Thiamine is needed to process them into energy instead of storing them as fat.   Hope this helps!  Keep us posted on your progress.
    • knitty kitty
      almost a year in recovery - so many questions about to give up

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      @kopiq,  Your case is not hopeless.  Doctors are not required to learn much about nutrition.  Celiac Disease causes damage to the lining of the small intestines resulting in malabsorption of essential vitamins and minerals.  The eight essential B vitamins  and the four fat soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K) are chemical compounds that our bodies cannot make, so we must get them from what we eat.  If we're not absorbing sufficient amounts from our food, then supplementing with vitamins and minerals help boost our ability to absorb them.  The B vitamins are safe and water soluble, easily excreted in urine if not needed or not absorbed.  Essential minerals are important, too.  Magnesium and Thiamine make life sustaining enzymes together.   Blood tests for the B vitamins are notoriously inaccurate.  By the time a deficiency shows up in the blood, you've been deficient for a few years. The best way to tell is to try taking a  B Complex and looking for health improvements. Taking a B Complex and Benfotiamine, a form of thiamine shown to promote intestinal healing, helped me immensely.  I also took Vitamin D and Magnesium Glycinate and others. Did your doctor offer any treatment to correct your critically low Vitamin D level?   Mine was lower than yours.  My doctor prescribed the less bioavailable form D2.  Our bodies utilize the D3 form better.  I bought over the counter Vitamin D3 supplements (1000 IU) and took several with each meal.  Taking high doses of Vitamin D to correct a deficiency is safe and very effective at improving health.  I started feeling better quickly.  Vitamin D helps regulate the immune system and lower inflammation, as well as makes hormones. Laying out in the sun cannot correct a Vitamin D deficiency unless you're below the 33rd parallel (on a tropical island with abundant exposed skin for several months).  Ultraviolet rays from the sun destroy the thiamine in the body.  That feeling of lethargy is because the sun exposure broke down thiamine into unusable pieces.  Thiamine and the B vitamins make ATP, the energy currency the body requires to function, to make digestive enzymes, to regulate body temperature, to think, to heal itself.  We need more Thiamine when we're outdoors in hot weather, working or exercising.  Thiamine deficiency doesn't cause heat stroke, but thiamine deficiency can make heat stroke symptoms worse.  We need more Thiamine when we're physically ill or injured or undergoing medical procedures.  We need more Thiamine when we're emotionally stressed or traumatized.  Anxiety and depression are very early symptoms of thiamine and other nutritional deficiencies.   Rashes can be caused by deficiencies in Niacin B3, Vitamin A, or Vitamin C.  Some rashes can become worse with exposure to sunlight.   The B vitamins are needed to make digestive enzymes that will help you digest fat and proteins better.  Meats are an excellent source of B vitamins.  Sweet potato and plantain are high in carbohydrates.  The more carbohydrates one eats, there is a greater metabolic need for thiamine to turn them into energy, ATP. Can your doctor refer you to a dietician or nutritionist?
    • Rejoicephd
      Struggling to get into a good pattern

      By Rejoicephd · Posted

      Thank you @cristiana.  Its really helpful to hear your experience, thanks for sharing.  8 years is a long time!  And its also good to know that others have experienced worsening before it gets better.  I've just started doing the food diary recently, and I'll keep that going. It's at least helping me try to get a handle on this, and also helps increase my overall awareness of what I'm putting in my body. I will also message my GI doc in the meantime too.  Thanks, it's really helpful to talk through this.  
    • trents
      Help!

      By trents · Posted

      Yes, the development of additional food intolerances is a common spinoff of celiac disease. To ensure valid testing after beginning a "gluten challenge" you would need to be consuming at least 10g of gluten daily (about the amount in 4-6 slices of wheat bread) for at least two weeks. Many cannot follow through with this regimen, however, as their intolerance reactions are just too strong and present too much health risk.
    • junell
      Help!

      By junell · Posted

      I've been gluten free for 5 years, as well as being intolerant to gluten, my list of intolerances is growing.. from dairy, eggs, soya, yeast, to mushroom, garlic, onion, spinach and quite a few in-between, basically my diet is gluten-free cornflakes, rice, banana, almond milk and fish anything else causes bloating, severe abdominal pain, mucousy diarrhoea, lethargy, muscle and joint pain, kidney pain, headaches, and mouth ulcers. I've been told it's IBS, I think it's more than that... I've been sent to a gastroenterologist who tested for coeliac, if course it came back negative because, as I told him, I haven't eaten gluten for 5 years, he's asked me to eat gluten for 4 weeks and redo the blood test, so I've tried small amounts of crispbread for 3 days and am in agony, I can't do this for 4 weeks and then however long it'll take to recover. Has anyone got any suggestions, and is multiple food intolerances a common side effect of coeliac? I'm struggling! And struggling to be taken seriously 😒 
×
×
  • Create New...