Hi all google researchers~ Im a great fan of this website. Come here
on a daily basis to check out interesting questions..its fantastic
trivia 4 me. Finally I have a question that im willing to spend $ to
ask.. hope you guys will help =|

my girlfriend is 20 years old, weighs 39 kg and is 151cm tall
(chinese). She is a very active girl (plays 4 sports for our
university hall team) and eats a healthy diet..preferring vegetables
and fish, sometimes eating meat. To me, she should be an extremely
healthy girl, being so naturally sports inclined. However, she seems
to have some health problems that we kind of ignore because it doesnt
occur often. A year ago, she would sometimes get gastrics or fainting
spells in the middle of the night (maybe 5 times over that year). She
will feel lightheaded and her head will feel spinning. This year,
there were 2 weeks when her stomach felt continually upset. Whatever
she ate, she would pass it out very soon, and her stomach feels empty.
She had diarrhoea and even medicine from the doctor didnt help much.
It gradually got better. Recently, due to training, she has lost
weight again (she used to be around 39-40. now she is 38). Yesterday,
after eating too little dinner, she had gastrics again in the middle
of the night. This morning, I made her take breakfast early, and after
taking breakfast she feels like she havent ate anything at all. She
was never "officially" diagnosed with gastrics, and doesnt take
antacid or anything. The condition is never very serious. She will
drink vitasoy or milo sometimes or we just get some food for her.
Please advice me on what I should do.

1) Should she gain some weight? How much? I understand that according
the BMI standards for americans, she will be way underweight. But she
is a petite girl with a small frame (and is weight conscious).

2) Should we see a doctor and perhaps test for low blood pressure?
What kind of illness might this be?

I dont need very detailed answers. Just some good advice from someone
more experienced. Please advice if my price is too low.

I'm hoping I'm wrong but my mother had similar symptoms and because
the disease is rather rare it took doctors years to diagnose it
properly.

It can be treated but not cured and is presumably genetic.

Just check out the google search ://www.google.com/search?q=crohn's+disease
for more information.

Best of luck to both of you.

nfck

Ok, I HAVE Crohn's Disease and that really doesn't sound like Crohn's.
 Fainting could have something to do with her blood circulation and
her extremely low weight could also be a factor.  Go see a
nutritionist, a gastrentorologist, or similar doctor.  She needs a
high level of calories in her diet to maintain such a high level of
exercise, she might not be getting that.  Her continual pains for
weeks at a time could indicate some milder form of IBD, inflammatory
bowel disease.

And to nfck-ga, Crohn's is more than just genetic.  Current theories
suspect some type of viral infection of which genetics plays a role in
making one vunerable to in the first place.
http://www.ccfa.org/

"The most common symptoms of Crohn's disease are abdominal pain, often
in the lower right area, and diarrhea. Rectal bleeding, weight loss,
and fever may also occur. Bleeding may be serious and persistent,
leading to anemia. Children with Crohn's disease may suffer delayed
development and stunted growth."

ok this was what i found upon researching on crohns. nope i dont think
she got that. not the rectal bleeding .just diarrhoea. abdominal pain
sounds familiar..but we thought it was menstrual cramps. gee..that
sounds serious. stunted growth? well her parents are short. so i guess
thats the reason why she's short. well im sure hoping ure wrong nfck,
but i'll watch out.
dguido, i suspect malnutrition too. but she just has a small appetite,
and she doesnt eat a lot of carbo, now that you mention it.
thanks a lot for your comments nfck and dguido! =)

> fainting spells in the middle of the night
I hope this doesn't disrupt her sleep. ...

> there were 2 weeks when her stomach felt continually upset
The flu? It happens. ...

Seriously, and not to be flippant about this, but it sounds like she
might simply have a vitamin deficiency. Due to women's natural cycle
they lose large amounts of iron each month. I didn't see anything
there about her taking any vitamin supplements. She may simply be
anemic.

The real answer will come from a properly licensed physician and/or
nutritionist, of which I am neither. I recommend taking her to see a
medical doctor.

As a health professional and a realist I can both understand your
concerns and understand the practical problems associated.
What exactly do you mean by "fainting spells in the middle of the night"?
it's possible that the age and activity means that her metabolic rate
is so high that she would need to eat a great deal to match the
calorific demand.
However, she should see a doctor, and now.
A full set of blood tests especially Thyroid function, and of course
Diabetes should be excluded as some of the symptoms suggest this
possibility and there are a million undiagnosed diabetics worldwide.
Low blood pressure at her age and weight and standard of fitness is
normal and would should not really be the concern here.
To summarise, it may be that she is perfectly healthy and the symptoms
you mention could be too much living and not enough testing, or, it
may be something that needs to be treated. It's not possible from here
to suggest anything else other than a doctors consultation, ask her if
you can go along, and write down the symptoms that concern you and
when and how they happen so that the doctor can examine , test and
review.
your sincerely
John
ps. It's good that she has a partner who cares for her well being.

I know a chinese girl exactly the same. If shes rebeling against
parents wishes, much strain will be on her. Mental, emotional,
physical and even spiritual things govern our lives and well-being.
Disease, is dis-ease. My understanding now is that much originates in
the colon. Diet is crucial. You mention milo, no no. Most chinese are
lactose intolerant- usually gives them the runs. Your friends answers
are to be found in many places and may possibly take some time
depending on how urgently she studies herself and most importantly
diet. Ther is no magic pill here but, sounds like an overactive
thyroid. You say;  She will
drink vitasoy or milo sometimes or we just get some food for her. Try
some basic food discilpline like 3meals a day. Good Trivia?

i did try and post a comment. dont know why it didnt posted..shrug.
anyway..sorry abt the ironic "fainting spells in the middle of the
night". its more like..she will start feeling giddy..its usually in
the evening and it persists into the night. when she lies down, she
can feel the back of her head spinning. the sensation doesnt stop. it
gets milder after a nap, but the light headed feeling will still be
there. she does eat her 3 proper meals most of the time. but i guess
as hostellites, sometimes we just go without food or just instant
noodles, especially on weekends when food is not catered for. that is
certainly not very frequent. she suspects worms in her stomach or
something, because she seems to feel hungry even after meals. we going
to see a doctor soon. really thanks for all your helpful advice and
comments! i appreciate it a lot a lot.