I have low sodium levels. What does this mean???

Question

I've had diabetes for over 30 years and take pretty good care of myself. Recently though, through blood work my sodium levels are low? What does this mean?

Answer 1

ml - Unfortunately, figuring out why someone has a low sodium level (hyponatremia) is a fairly complicated thing to do! Part of the question is how low was your sodium? Chances are, it was a transient thing and doesn't mean much. If your sodium levels were significantly low (low 120s), you would probably have symptoms such as confusion, nausea, or just wouldn't feel well. Once you get into the 110s or lower, people get VERY confused and can have seizures or coma. However, if you sodium drifts down slowly over days or weeks, you may not be as symptomatic as someone who dropped their sodium to the same level over the course of a day.

The first thing to point out is that in a diabetic patient, high blood sugars can cause the sodium to become low because the glucose draws water into the bloodstream and dilutes the sodium that is present. Since you say you take pretty good care of yourself, I will assume that your sugars are well-controlled and that this is not the case.

Most commonly, the problem with low sodium levels is TOO MUCH WATER diluting the sodium, not TOO LITTLE SODIUM. People sometimes think that not consuming enough salt leads to low sodium levels, but healthy kidneys should be able to hold onto your sodium very efficiently.

The three most common things that will cause a low sodium in an otherwise healthy person:

- One thing that can prevent your kidneys from holding onto sodium is medication. Diuretics basically work by temporarily "poisoning" your kidneys. In the process, you waste sodium in your urine, and if you replace the urine losses by drinking water or other fluids low in sodium, then your sodium level will fall. So first question is... are you taking diuretics?

- Drinking too much fluid too quickly can also overtake your kidney's ability to get rid of the extra fluid. Again, the extra fluid leads to dilution of your sodium levels. So if you drank a ton of water right before you had your blood test, that could cause it to become a little low.

- Sweating a lot and drinking a lot of water can make your sodium drop. Marathon runners commonly get low sodium levels after/during a race because they lose sodium in their sweat and then drink water (or other low-sodium fluids) to replace their fluid losses.

Besides those, the list is very long and should be explored with your doctor. Causes may include heart failure, liver failure, kidney disease, and cerebral salt wasting (seen in people with head injury or infections). Any of these would be pretty obvious if they've become advanced enough to drop your sodium significantly. Other more subtle causes can include decreased thyroid function, decreased adrenal function, or something called SIADH. Very high levels of protein or triglycerides can cause your sodium assay to be falsely low... Like I said, there are dozens of things that can cause a low sodium and to figure it out would require evaluation by your doctor.

I would hope that if your sodium were low enough to be concerned about, your doctor would have said something. But it is never wrong to ask the doctor if you have concerns that were not addressed. I hope that quick overview was helpful! Good luck to you!

Answer 2

Low Sodium Levels

Answer 3

What Does Low Sodium Mean

Answer 4

1

Answer 5

You MAY have something going on with your kidneys... kidney problems are common complications of diabetes, even if you have had good control over your blood sugars. Something you could look up would be diabetic nephropathy... however, usually the symptoms of kidney disease would include water retention because the kidneys weren't getting rid of enough sodium... (i.e. the opposite of your problem). Low Sodium is also called "Hyponatremia". The symptoms of hyponatremia include bloating and puffiness in the face and fingers, nausea, vomiting, muscle weakness, headache and disorientation. Did you doctor do any other tests? Did he/she check the protein levels in your urine? That is also a good sign if something is going on inside your kidneys... you will have TOO MUCH protein in your urine because your kidneys aren't filtering correctly anymore...
This is just the tip of the iceberg... but hopefully this helps get a start on some research for you...

Answer 6

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RE:
I have low sodium levels. What does this mean???
I've had diabetes for over 30 years and take pretty good care of myself. Recently though, through blood work my sodium levels are low? What does this mean?

Answer 7

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Answer 8

have you been on a especially strict diet that is low sodium? People that aren't eating correctly or are too focused on one or two things can get this. Also, it can happen with certain medications, or conditions. Have you tried webmd?

Answer 9

my dad was hospitalized with low sodium levels and the cause turned out to be small cell lung cancer...apparently low sodium is common with this cancer

Answer 10

went to ER because of my ashma. Durning test Dr. decovered my Sodium was low, gave me pint of sodium. what should I do now?