3 year old excessive thirst

[ShallWeGoToTheFirepit]

Hi everyone.

My 3 year old DD has always been a big drinker. She guzzled her bottles and milk as a baby and always drank lots of water and milk.

I never thought anything of it until preschool mentioned it to me recently.

Since then (on Friday) I have kept a tally of how many drinks she has. She mostly drinks water or milk, with the occasional squash or diluted fresh juice.

She has had 14 drinks today in total, she has a large munchkin cup if you know the one I mean, so it's quite a big cup rather than a small beaker.

When she does drink each drink, she will more often or not guzzle them down. She does pee very often and her pee is clear. I honestly thought it was just good hydration!

Is this normal? Or anything to worry about? No other symptoms of anything, otherwise a very strapping healthy preschooler. She is slightly on the smaller side, but I am petite and she's plotting on her charts correctly. I'm now worried about over hydration.

Thank you!

Is she losing weight, or eating a lot as well?

Is she sleepy or alert?

You need to get her seen by your doctor, really, to rule out diabetes.

14 big cups does sound a lot. Really I would offer water only with and between meals with milk only in the morning and at bedtime. I would sack off the sweet drinks.

Yes, could be a sign of diabetes, so essential to check asap.

She's very alert and absolutely fine!

I have tried refusing drinks (as she wees in the night at least once) and she gets incredibly upset. She guzzles them to the point she gasps at the end of a big chug IYSWIM.

I would've thought nothing of it until preschool mentioned it. I've just looked online and NHS says 5-7 drinks is normal.

She eats a lot of fruit and veg so she is getting fluids from other sources too. She has lots of yogurt and calcium. Strange!

If it's a recent thing, accompanied by weight loss, tiredness and weeing more than usual, I would get her checked for diabetes ASAP.
If it's something that she has always done, is it just a habit she's got into? What happens if you reduce the amount in each cup?

Is this a symptom of diabetes?

We do have history of hypoglycaemia (might have slept that wrong) in the family. My dad, his dad and his dad all had it. If they don't eat / drink or have an empty stomach they get very shaky and weak and always had dextrose on them but I don't think diabetes was ever actually diagnosed. I could have got that wrong though!

I'll do an econsult with the GP in the morning.

How much fluid is she drinking in terms of mls?

The she has always been a guzzler even as a tiny bub.. but she would always leave a bit left in her cup and drink that leisurely.

But now she is downing all cups of whatever she has.

I don't ever offer her a drink because she's always got one that she's asked for.

I'll try and reduce the fluid in take tomorrow a little bit by putting less water in and see how she reacts to it.

Following with interest as my 20m old is a guzzler. He actually threw up this morning after downing 2 sippy cups of water in quick succession. Hadn't even considered it might be a sign of something more sinister but will definitely get him checked out if it is.

Her munchkin cup is 296 mls.

I fill it up leaving a cm from the top to screw the lid on. Most trying to do the maths here but maybe 280mls x 14 a day give or take?

Yes, it is a symptom of diabetes mellitus and diabetes insipidus.

You should take her to the GP.

If I've done the maths right with the measurements of the cup, it's around 3,920mls of fluid a day

Yes, it's a sign of diabetes. I would have her checked for it, especially if the family has a history of hypoglycemia.It may be mild diabetes (which needs treating) but could still be causing the excessive thirst.

From the Diabetes UK website

Symptoms of type 1 diabetes in children
The most common symptoms of type 1 diabetes in children are:

1. Toilet — Going to the toilet a lot to pass urine, bed wetting by a previously dry child or heavier nappies in babies. Getting up in the night to go to the toilet.
2. Thirsty — Being really thirsty and not being able to quench the thirst. Your child may ask for a drink more often, finish drinks very quickly or you may notice they generally drink more.
3. Tired — Feeling more tired than usual. Having less energy than normal, not playing as often, less energy for sports
4. Thinner — Losing weight or looking thinner than usual.

You may also notice your child getting more infections than usual. The symptoms of type 1 diabetes tend to come on within a matter of days or weeks and you should get urgent medical help if you notice any of these symptoms.

4 litres of fluid a day is extremely high for a 3 year old. Book an emergency GP appointment first thing

Mild diabetes?

Thank you, I will do this first thing in the morning and report back.

@ShallWeGoToTheFirepit

yes, definitely get her checked out (diabetes)

when my blood sugars are good my thirst is 'normal' when it's bad I can't get enough water, it's nothing like normal thirst.

please don't restrict water, but don't give her juice or squash. Milk is ok.

Thank you this is good to know!

I had no idea about the link of diabetes I feel like I should've got a handle on this a long time ago now, I feel quite guilty about it. But she's an only child and an only grand child so I don't have a lot to compare her to!

Very glad I posted. I'll do an econsult first thing at 8am and report back what the GP say.

I also won't restrict fluids then. She normally has a milk before bed and only tends to have squash when out and about (a fruit shoot or something if I'm at the shops for instance)

I'll continue the water and the milk before bed, I just would hate her to be incredibly thirsty as it's not a nice feeling.
Thank you, your reply has been really helpful

If you can, please let me know how you get on & I'll do the same tomorrow

@ShallWeGoToTheFirepit I will do, although it may take a bit of time to get him seen as I've just mentioned this thread to my partner and he's completely dismissed it as ridiculous and that our LO is just a busy/active toddler 🙄

I have two diabetic children and they both presented with extreme thirst and one wet overnight still. If she is thirsty because of diabetes it will be because her blood sugar is high so I would just give water and no milk as that will just increase her blood sugar and get a gp appointment first thing for them to do a urine test. Hopefully if she has been like it for a while it isn't diabetes as my sons came on quite quickly but I would definitely rule it out as for a while the pancreas can still work in what they call the 'honeymoon' phase so the pancreas will be still working to some extent on and off as the body is shocked into producing insulin.

Possibly diabetes. Sorry OP 😔

It’s worrying you’ve left this for so long OP given the alarming history. I’m sure you’re kicking yourself now but it may be worth speaking to your HV about some baseline medical/ first aid courses you could do. All the best going forward