Sodium Levels Very Low

[SusanK]

Please help,

I was very sick, ended up in the hospital. They said it was because my sodium level was dangerously low. After many, many test they can not find any reason. I don't want to feel that bad again. Has anyone had this problem? Do you know if it is linked to Celiac? Doctors just ask if you are staying on the diet and that the end to that.

Susan

[sunshinen]

I don't know if it is connected. But my sodium levels were always low before I went gluten free. I have not had any tests since to see if they are normal now.

[loomis]

bad diarhea can cause low sodium levels because you lose electrolytes and water during bowel movements. When i tried to induce labor using castor oil i had horrible diarhea and my sodium levels were very low.

[georgie]

Low Sodium, or a Sodium / Potassium imbalance can be caused by a few things. Did your Dr run some tests ? Thyroid people can get low sodium, and it can be a sign of Hypopituitarism and Hypoaldosteronism. Some of your tests should have been for low alderosterone ,and adrenal fatigue.

Aldosterone is a steroid secreted by the cortex of the adrenal gland. It is

the most potent hormone regulating the body's electrolyte balance.

Aldosterone acts directly on the kidney to decrease the rate of sodium-ion excretion (with accompanying retention of water), and to increase the rate of potassium-ion excretion.

Deficiencies of aldosterone include low to very low blood pressure and high pulse due to lower blood volume from lack of sodium, excessive urination, desire to eat salt, dizziness or lightheadedness on standing, and palpitations, a pale, hollow face, a drowsy, absent-minded look, Severe cases may lead to high potassium and low sodium in blood tests. When the adrenals are not making aldosterone, renin, (a kidney enzyme), increases, but low aldosterone can also be caused by lack of renin enzyme. Without enough renin, angiotensin I and II can't be broken down into enough aldosterone and this is called hyporeninemic hypoaldosteronism.

[TestyTommy]

The same thing happened to me about 2 years before I was diagnosed with celiac. Eating gluten made me very thirsty, and I drank so much water that I ended up in the hospital with hyponaetremia (low sodium). It is a very serious condition, and the ER doctor who figured it out (only after I returned to the ER twice and refused to leave) told me I was a few hours away from going into a coma and probably suffering brain damage.

Eat plenty of salt. Drink Gatorade instead of water. I make an electrolyte drink with 1/3 cup fresh lemon or lime juice mixed with a quart of water and a little stevia for sweetness (to avoid all the sugar in Gatorade). There are also electrolyte capsules that you can get. They contain mostly salt, but also other minerals (potassium, magnesium, calcium) that mirror the electrolytes in your blood. Long distance runners use them when they drink lots of water on long runs. They're cheaper, healthier and lighter than Gatorade.

[Mtndog]

My sodium tends to run a bit low. I'm sorry you got so sick.

If you drink a lot (and pee a lot) that can contribute too.

[allison]

I have low blood pressure and was told to eat a high salt diet--

I found canned soups/powdered soups (like Cup O'Soup) to be very helpful. Campbells is chock full of salt.

[Guest AutumnE]

My aunt had this from anorexia but I imagine it would happen to a celiac too since we dont absorb either. Unfortunately her's wasnt caught in time. It caused her kidneys to fail and her body shut down.

I would do as someone else suggested try to be sure your not drinking too much although its easy to get dehydrated when you have diarrhea and follow a very salty diet.

[LukeDaniel]

On 12/18/2006 at 1:05 PM, SusanK said:

Please help,

I was very sick, ended up in the hospital. They said it was because my sodium level was dangerously low. After many, many test they can not find any reason. I don't want to feel that bad again. Has anyone had this problem? Do you know if it is linked to Celiac? Doctors just ask if you are staying on the diet and that the end to that.

Susan

I had night sweats and my heart pounded very hard for many years, going back to my high school years. The other day my blood sugar dropped and I overheated. I ate some sweets and my blood sugar normalized, but my heart as per usual felt like it was going to leap out of my chest.

 

So the next day I decided to try some Ensure, or Boost, or Readycare,  to boost my elctrolytes and minerals. Sure enough within one half of an hour after drinking a large glass of the stuff, my heart felt better than it had felt in many many years.  Since that day, my heart is right as rain, I don't have night sweats, and people don't ask me anymore why I am so short of breath and they use to ask me why my breath is so labored. So now it has been a week of taking ReadyCare or Ensure and my heart is great, I can't even feel my heart beat in my chest anymore, or just a little. I am no longer short of breath, and my breathing is not labored. To anyone reading this post of mine, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain if you have these  symptoms you might as well try some Ensure, even if your blood tests don't indicate low electrolytes or low minerals, try it anyway, because my blood tests did not indicate I was low in my electrolytes, and yet the Ensure or Boost changed my life, and may have added decades to my life expectancy.

Oh and if you are diabetic like me, you should probably take Glucerna, rather than Ensure. It has

the same electrolytes and minerals, but it is formulated for a diabetic.

LukeDaniel