Ketotic Hypoglycemia (KH)
In a healthy person, fuel for the brain and the general cell metabolism primarily comes from the burning of sugar deposits (glycogen).
When the glycogen stores are depleted, the body will switch to burn fat deposits.
The fat burn lead to two fuels for the brain, both glucose (sugar) and ketone bodies.
However, ketones in the blood will lead to nausea and eventually vomiting. This will lead to a vicious circle, where you cannot eat or drink sugar-rich items, which again leads to further fat burn and production of ketone bodies.
In a KH-patient, the glycogen stores are somehow insufficient. This leads to decreased fasting tolerance with earlier onset of fat burn and hence ketone bodies.
In most patients, the hypoglycemia is relatively mild, and the ketone bodies help to provide fuel to the brain, which prevents loss of consciousness and convulsions.
However, in relatively few patients, the condition is more severe, but still without an identified cause despite intense investigations in hormones and cell metabolism. Such patients are said to have “idiopathic” KH, or IKH, which simply means KH without any known cause
Did you know that continuous hypoglycemia can cause changes in brain structures?
KH Associations
If you are looking for more information on ketotic hypoglycemia (KH), we recommend that you contact associations and patient groups. These are the associations we know that work in supporting and helping treat KH around the world…
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KH groups
online
KETOTIC HYPOGLYCEMIA INTERNATIONAL FAMILY SUPPORT GROUP
Facebook – English
KETOTIC HYPOGLYCEMIA INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS GROUP
Facebook – English
YOU NEVER KNOW HOW STRONG YOU ARE,
UNTIL BEING STRONG IS YOUR ONLY CHOICE.
Bob Marley
Thanks to new technologies we can get information faster to its destination.
At The Hippo House, we want to put our two cents on families to find each other quicker.
Feeling supported at the time of diagnosis should be paramount. Facing alone the “grief of the healthy child” is very, very difficult.
For that reason, we hope we have helped you in this road that you are starting to walk along.
Brain damage from continued hypoglycemia can cause learning difficulties, seizure disorders, vision problems, etc.
Are we missing something?
We want The Hippo House to be a really useful site,
where families can find support.
For that reason, if you know some association, blog or group and it does not appear in our web,
We would be very grateful if you send us the information 🙂