swellmomma Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 When DS13 was in the ER on sun night and Monday morning the nurses both asked if he had asthma or was just getting over a cold because he O2 sats were only at 94-95%. He has not had a cold, and as far as we know he does not have asthma. What else could cause a lower O2 sat rate? Is there anything we can be doing at home to increase it? He is not a particularily active boy. He does ride his bike but he gets winded easily, even just out walking. When he does walk it is always so slow, I have tried for us to go out walking together for exercise but can't get him to pick up the pace to make it actual exercise. Would having hime do some sort of cardio workout help him? What sorts work best(and don't say running because I can't run and would like to find something I can do with him or properly supervise him)? Pretty soon the snow will fly so his bike will need to be put away. We are signed up as a family to do cross country skiing with the club once we have enough snow but that is still 6-8 weeks away, and is only once a week. I need ideas of ways to help build up his fitness level and increase his O2 sats. Also he is a little chunky, not overly flabby, he is currently 5' (ish) tall and 120 lbs. So I want to start him off slowly until he is more fit and increase as he is able. Ideas please. :bigear: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 Not being active can lead to lower O2 stats, I think. At least that has been the case for me. Do you have a Y in your area? I think that finding things that he might enjoy there would be a good thing. Things I can think of are swimming, basketball, ping pong, pickle ball, volley ball that are all enjoyed by boys his age at the Y. Also at our Y, a 13 year old can use the cardio equipment (like the exercise bikes) as long as you are with him. At age 14, they can use the equipment on their own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted October 5, 2011 Author Share Posted October 5, 2011 No there is no Y, the closest one is 2 hours away. The gym at the college in the next town won't let him get a membership until 16 and there is no other gym around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiewindmomma Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 Some people just naturally ride lower... There are all kinds of fitness DVDs you can do at home, indoor swimming, jumping rope, anything that will get his heart rate up will also generally cause him to suck in more air. I'd also make sure he's not deficient in iron. Your hemoglobin levels also help determine your capacity for saturation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 No there is no Y, the closest one is 2 hours away. The gym at the college in the next town won't let him get a membership until 16 and there is no other gym around. How about a Wii? I don't own one but it sounds like kids like it and often get a lot of exercise doing different games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted October 5, 2011 Author Share Posted October 5, 2011 Good idea about checking his iron levels. We haven't been eating much red meat due to finances and I know my sister has always struggled with anemia. I will have that looked into. I just got them their supplements again, do you think a regular multivitamin would have enough iron in it to make a difference if he was in fact anemic? Jean we don't have a Wii but we do have an xbox, maybe I can get his dad to buy him the kinnect for christmas. Being that he is a video game fanatic he would love to do stuff with that. Great idea. I will look into some fitness dvds that would work for his age. All I have here are 30Day shred and biggest loser cardio max. I have tried the biggest loser one yet to know if it would be pushing him too hard. I will not be letting him do 30Day shred until he is older and more fit. Thanks for the help ladies. I have not dealt with low O2 in any of the kids before outside of when they were sick(like when my 3rd had RSV as a baby). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 From dd the paramedic, 94-95% O2 sats - was he cold? O2 SAT monitors can register lower than his actual sat if his extremeties were cold and in particular his fingers, this can cause a lower reading than his actual saturation level. Being a little bit overweight can also cause O2 sats to be lower. She said to definitely take him walking outside is excellent even if he walks slowly. Don't make him walk more than 10 minutes at a time and stick with it because fresh air will raise his O2 sats. Keep his protein up. If he is anemic, his sats would drop and also if he has been around smoking or campfires. 94-95 is not a danger zone. It's good to be aware and try to get them up if you can, but you don't need to be anxious....just aware and especially if he gets any respiratory infections. 95-100% is the normal range. So he's borderline but not far enough off to have to make a radical change or be seriously worried. That said, pollen allergies and what not - being stuffed up (that's me this time of year and lots of breathing through my mouth) can affect it too. Your elevation can affect this too. O2 sats are lower at higher elevations. Faith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted October 5, 2011 Author Share Posted October 5, 2011 Thank you Faith. He was not cold at all, but I am wondering if it was a combination of iron levels and his weight. I will get him walking with me more even if it is slow. He is a mouth breather usually. He can not eat/drink and breathe at the same time, never could, even as a baby. He was on meds as a newborn until 4 months old for apnea. If he still had an apnea woould that reduce his O2 sats? I am not overly worried about it but certainly want him to raise them if he can, give a little more cushion so to speak in case he gets a cold or illness that reduces them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 Thank you Faith. He was not cold at all, but I am wondering if it was a combination of iron levels and his weight. I will get him walking with me more even if it is slow. He is a mouth breather usually. He can not eat/drink and breathe at the same time, never could, even as a baby. He was on meds as a newborn until 4 months old for apnea. If he still had an apnea woould that reduce his O2 sats? I am not overly worried about it but certainly want him to raise them if he can, give a little more cushion so to speak in case he gets a cold or illness that reduces them. Hi, DD says that she would expect lower O2 sats from someone who has routine trouble breathing through his nose and she would not be shocked if he was again having trouble with sleep apnea. These conditions figure heavily into oxygen saturation numbers. Sleeping somewhat propped up may help if his sleep apnea is very mild. Has he ever had his tonsils and adenoids checked? Swollen tonsils and over-sized adenoids are definite culprits in lower O2 sats for kids. Faith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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