Low heart beat

I'm not sure what to think but my son and I have been on a diet, me since Jan 1, and he maybe Dec 1.  He has lost around 45 pounds, way too much, he hikes the mountain, and a lot of days he only consumes 800 calories, or was.  He went for a physical and found his heart beat was only 40 beats per minute.  I looked it up and found a similar condition for anorexia, was wondering if anyone else has had this happen, what it means, and can it be corrected.  My son currently has been referred to a cardiologist and has to wear a halter monitor for a month???

What a worrisome situation!  the 40 beats per minute, was that his resting heart rate? 

I was just reading about heart rates yesterday, and that appears below normal guidelines.   No wonder you are concerned.  What did the doctors say or are they waiting for test results to give you a diagnosis?

but as to why, sadly no one here can diagnose your son or give you medical treatment advice, but we can worry with you & share {{{hugs}}}  It sounds like you are doing the right thing by having him tested.

the other thing you mention is the 800 calories a day.  Is there a reason he is limiting his food?  If he is restricting intentionally, he could have a problem that might be helped by a therapist or psychologist or other professional trained to deal with these issues.  Have you considered scheduling an appointment?  

aaaah!!!

ask the cardiologist if they will do an ultrasound on his heart!!! or at least an EKG.  i was like that (not 45 lbs tho) and my heart wall was too thin and i had water around my heart - that means i could have died if i did any excersize!! def get him checked out plz!

oh wow, he is seeing a doctor, and I worry about the exercise as he trys to climb up and down the mountain twice a week.  His heartrate is 40 at rest, it climbs up to maybe 120 during exercise.  He is 36 and lives across the states from me - he's in Arizona, I'm in Wisconsin, but talk to him daily and we post everything we eat together.  That sounds like a very scary situation you had, how are you doing today? How long ago was that?

When I was younger I used to run alot and my heart rate was down to 42. My Dr ran a bunch of tests, including having me wear a holter monitor for a couple days. (your son has to wear one for a whole month!?) All my tests came back negative for any heart problems & the Dr said my "bradycardia" was due to my being so physically active.

Is your son having any symptoms like dizziness? (I was dizzy at the time which concerned my Dr, but it turned out the dizziness was from another medical problem I have). If he's dizzy it could be a sign of a heart problem...or it could just be that he's not eating enough, especially with all the exercise he's getting!

The holter monitor is a portable EKG that will show the Drs what is going on with the heart when your son is active, resting, sleeping, etc....It's good to hear his Dr is being so thorough.

I sure hope they're able to rule out any heart problems and his low heart rate is just due to his being in good shape!

 From: http://www.healthscout.com/ency/68/201/main.h tml :

"Slower than average heart rates are normal in people who are physically fit and people who are sleeping. Many athletes who train regularly have resting heart rates of 40 to 60 beats per minute."

That is much more comforting, thank you :)

You are right to be very concerned.  The holter monitor will record his heart rate and the doctor will be able to see exactly what's going on.

He needs to eat more.  Losing weight does not equal good health.  There's more to it than that.  He could be burning muscle mass and the heart is a muscle.

Please read this

The Body Neglected

I'm sorry to hear about your son! But, I'm glad I may have something constructive to say about the topic.

I have a condition that my cardiologist diagnosed this past winter called neurocardiogenic syncope. You can look it up online, it's basically a fainting disease. I had to wear a heart monitor for a month (at school; it sucked) as well. The dr. also ordered several tests including EKGs, ECGs, ultrasounds, etc. I had very low blood pressure and fainted a lot previous to the diagnosis. I also did a tilt-table test and that's how I found out about my condition. If the cardiologist does recognize that he does have this condition, they may also do a tilt-table test. It will be obvious if he has this condition from that test.

Once I was diagnosed, they recommended that I increase my salt intake and exercize everyday to increase my blood pressure. They also told me NO DIETS. That is because it can cause me to faint. I am also to avoid stress (like I can do that) and eat often.

Regardless of the presence of a heart condition, he has to eat more. I don't know if he has an eating disorder, but it's likely he is very unhealthy by eating so little and damaging his organs AND heart in the process. Eating disorders are complex, so there will be great emotional and psychological issues that he may be facing. These are often less obvious issues than the dramatic weight loss. But, they could be even harder and more serious to treat than the physical symptoms. I would definitely try to talk to him about seeking medical help, especially because his heart is involved. This can be dangerous. I hope that you can find some sort of help from this very long post.

Did they do other tests as well? I know that one of the test reported very high sodium levels?? He tells me I worry for nothing and sends me the definition for anorexia, he is just so stubborn I should probably start talking to his wife to get after him :)  He does work out and climb a mountain twice a week and feels perfectly fine other than that, my thought was why was the doctor recommending that monitor for a month, thanks for all the thoughts I have received up to this point, I know doctors don't know everything and maybe one doctor knows something that another one does not

All of the tests I can remember the doctors ordering were: tilt-table testing, electrocardiogram, ultrasounds, several ekgs, and the heart monitor device. Cardiologists are usually pretty good at determining the true issue behind the heart problems because the tests are often very definite and measurable. They did the monitor for a month to track any "episodes" I had. I had to push the button every time I had an episode and by doing it for a month, they found out the frequency and duration of the episodes. The higher number of episodes they can work with, the more accurate the results.

I am really surprised by the high sodium, as sodium increases heart rate and he still has an abnormally low level. Did they report anything about potassium levels? If these are low, he could be very dehydrated, which can reduce blood pressure. If he doesn't have heart issues, he could be healthy. I would say that he may be dehydrated and may be underestimating his calorie intake. 800 calories/ day for an active male would be extremely low intake and dangerous. If in fact he is doing this still, he may be suffering from an ed or it may be as simple as a lack of knowledge about dieting. I really hope he will take your advice and talk to his doctor about this and figure out why he is having these issues.