How to Tell If Your Infant Has Diabetes

Diabetes is a potentially life-threatening disease that affects the body's ability to process sugar. The most common form of diabetes found in children is Type 1 diabetes. This type occurs when the pancreas stops producing insulin, which is used to convert sugar into energy, according to the website AboutKidsHealth.ca. Less than 1 percent of diabetes cases are diagnosed in children aged 1 or younger. Diabetes symptoms may affect your infant's number of wet diapers, rashes, sleeping patterns, hunger and overall demeanor, according to dLife, an online diabetes resource. By recognizing the symptoms of diabetes early on, you could save your infant from serious diabetes-related complications.

Things You'll Need

• Paper and writing utensil

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Instructions

Determining Your Child's Risk and Symptoms

• 1

  Determine if your child is at risk for diabetes by studying potential risk factors. Research is still being done to determine concrete Type 1 diabetes risk factors, but researchers believe the following may contribute to such risk: family history, genetics and geography. New research is showing that some viruses may also cause Type 1 diabetes in children with a certain genetic makeup. The virus causes the body to attack insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, according to New Scientist magazine. Because of this, note whether any possible diabetes-related symptoms follow a bout of illness, such as vomiting, diarrhea or extreme weight loss. Consider keeping a written log of any diabetes-related symptoms you recognize.

• 2

  Evaluate whether your infant has excessive wet diapers. According to the University of Washington Medicine Web site, the excess glucose in the body (caused by diabetes) goes into urine, pulling water from the body along with it. This causes increased urination. Normally, babies who are at least a few days old should produce at least five to six wet diapers per day, according to breastfeeding and parenting site KellyMom.com. As your baby gets older, she may produce fewer wet diapers overall, but the amount of wetness in each diaper should increase.

• 3

  Watch for a diaper rash that doesn't resolve or is recurring. If you frequently change your baby's diapers and have properly treated diaper rash, the rash should occur infrequently. If the rash doesn't go away or is recurring, this could indicate another health problem.

• 4

  Determine if your child is sleeping more than usual. Newborns need at least 16 hours of sleep per day, while a 1-year-old needs 14 hours, according to the Lucille Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford. More sleep than that may indicate a problem, if not normal for your child.

• 5

  Note whether your infant has excessive hunger or thirst. While newborn infants eat frequently, your child should feel satisfied for a time after eating a meal. When blood sugar is excessively high, some may show signs in a thirst that seems to be unquenchable.

• 6

  Watch for irritability that isn't related to colic. Colic is categorized by an otherwise healthy infant crying for more than three hours per day, more than three days per week, for more than three weeks in a row, according to the Lucille Packard Children's Hospital.

• 7

  Consult with your doctor. Your doctor can perform tests on your infant to appropriately diagnose any health problems.