What might cause a young child to smell distinctly sweet?
I’m asking this question for a friend. He is making an appointment with the pediatrician, but this has grabbed ahold of him today and he is itching for some answers or even possibilities.
His son is 4½ years old, and he wakes up smelling very strong and sweet in the mornings. Dad has noticed a strong odor from his urine, and also notice that the child smells later in the day, even if he has had a bath. Otherwise he is a normal, healthy, happy child.
What sort of questions should he ask the doctor?
Could this be indicative of diabetes?
Aside from diabetes, what else might this mean?
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17 Answers
I could offer some ideas but I think that is a dangerous thing to do. It is best for them to wait and talk to the pediatrician. If he describes the symptoms, the doctor should know what to ask him.
My nieces started to sweat [odd] around that age too. When they grew up the smell went lighter but still. Seems it happens a lot nowdays. I remember we started to sweat bad only after 12 or so.
From eHow.
If your child is producing a sweet smelling body odor, contact your pediatrician. Sweet smelling body odors can indicate health problems, such as a urinary infection or diabetes. Urine that smells like maple syrup can be a symptom of maple syrup urine disease (MSUD). This is a metabolic disorder, which left untreated, can cause physical disabilities, mental retardation and even death. The incidences of this disease are rare, appearing in only one out of 225,000 births.
Read more: Body Odor in Young Children | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/about_5472322_body-odor-young-children.html#ixzz1V1twgn2G
Diet is the most likely cause of sweet smelling body odour (I have a list of foods and the weird things they make you smell of somewhere but I can’t find it).
Diabetes or some other metabolic disorder is also a possibility.
This could be very serious so urge the friend to take the child to a pediatrician. It could be juvenile diabetes.
He intends to call the doctor in the morning…
Diabetes was the first thing that came to my mind upon reading the question. I see fellow jellies agree.
It’s better to find out from a sweet smell than to have your child get seriously ill :( which has happened in my extended family.
Yikes! That’s some scary stuff. I’m glad that I’m my usual smelly self. ;-o
<Cuddles up with cat to avoid diabetes ;-)>
I’ve worked with various kids with metabolic disorders, some of which produce very distinctive odors, from maple syrup to rotting fish. It’s very good he’s having the kid checked out by a doctor.
Well, this is kind of scary. When my kids were little I noticed at one point that their urine smelled like maple syrup (like if they wet the bed or something.) It didn’t occur to me that there could be a serious problem….but they’re grown up and fine now….
On the ambulance I smelled someone who had the sweet odor of ketones. It is was from starvation and was/is unforgettable. :-(
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A sweet smell is also a sign of cystic fibrosis. Hopefully, the child has been taken to the doctor already.
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