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Why Is It Hard To Lose Weight When I Am Experiencing Lack Of Thirst, Infrequent Urination, And Excessively Dry And Flaky Skin?
Question: I have lack of thirst, infrequent urination, hard to lose weight and excessively dry, flaky skin. Have recently had high blood sugar in a blood test but symptoms inconsistent with type 2 diabetes - any ideas?
Brief Answer:
Explanations and recommendations given
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
There are a few things to consider while answering.
1. sugar levels - generally diabetes causes increased thirst with increased urination but in many patients might be asymptomatic and be unnoticed for a long time. One measurement is not generally enough to diagnose diabetes. It is recommended to have a fasting blood sugar, 8-12 hours fasting (meaning at least 8 hours without food but not more than 12 hours). Another way to diagnose it would be HbA1C check, which can be done even if you are not fasting and shows your average sugar in the last 3 months and is quite accurate.
2. The difficulty to loose weight with dry flaky skin- it would be good to have a TSH done if you have not have one in the last year or so. Thyroid can cause similar symptoms and is common in women after 50 years of age.
3. lack of thirst in itself is not a certain medical condition or something to worry about. Lack of thirst is mostly due to the habit of not drinking well- if we do not drink a lot of fluids for a while we do get to not feel very thirsty and we drink less. Infrequent urination is generally a consequence of drinking not enough water (fluids). Having creatinine and electrolyte tests with simple urinalysis can be done to rule out kidney problems and if no problems with the kidneys than there is no need to worry related to lack of thirst and infrequent urination. In this case aiming to have a bottle of water to sip small amounts of water frequently might help to make the habit of taking more fluids and will bring in a while the feeling of thirst.
I hope this is helpful and answers your questions.
Regards,
Antoneta Zotaj
General & Family Physician
Explanations and recommendations given
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
There are a few things to consider while answering.
1. sugar levels - generally diabetes causes increased thirst with increased urination but in many patients might be asymptomatic and be unnoticed for a long time. One measurement is not generally enough to diagnose diabetes. It is recommended to have a fasting blood sugar, 8-12 hours fasting (meaning at least 8 hours without food but not more than 12 hours). Another way to diagnose it would be HbA1C check, which can be done even if you are not fasting and shows your average sugar in the last 3 months and is quite accurate.
2. The difficulty to loose weight with dry flaky skin- it would be good to have a TSH done if you have not have one in the last year or so. Thyroid can cause similar symptoms and is common in women after 50 years of age.
3. lack of thirst in itself is not a certain medical condition or something to worry about. Lack of thirst is mostly due to the habit of not drinking well- if we do not drink a lot of fluids for a while we do get to not feel very thirsty and we drink less. Infrequent urination is generally a consequence of drinking not enough water (fluids). Having creatinine and electrolyte tests with simple urinalysis can be done to rule out kidney problems and if no problems with the kidneys than there is no need to worry related to lack of thirst and infrequent urination. In this case aiming to have a bottle of water to sip small amounts of water frequently might help to make the habit of taking more fluids and will bring in a while the feeling of thirst.
I hope this is helpful and answers your questions.
Regards,
Antoneta Zotaj
General & Family Physician
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Prasad
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