Fifteen month old has orange tongue and astringent breath

[mamayogibear]

So my son is very healthy, he breast feeds at least six times a day and eats lots of normal foods too. After some thought I attributed his orange tongue to our constantly eating curry with tumric in it. However today at lunch my sister said his breath smells astringent like acetone. I have smelt the breath of diabetics when they were getting close to dka and to me this is a different smell, more musty and pungent than fruity if that makes sense. Anyways my sister says there is something horribly wrong with him and I need to take him to the doctor asap even though we don't have insurance right now. No one in my family or in his dads family has diabetes. Anyways, is there any medical condition that could cause a orange tongue and astringetnt breath?

Thanks

[ErinYay]

Is his tongue actually orange, or is it coated? It could very well be a fungal infection, a symptom of reflux, or a number of other things. Juvenile diabetes, or type 1, does have a genetic link, but can frequently be found in kids with no family history.

If you google "orange tongue" and "acetone breath toddler," you'll get a *lot* of hits. I don't think you need to run to the ER, but I also don't know if it's a great idea to just wait it out.

[redvlagrl]

Hmm, my guess would be some sort of strep throat - my kids always have sweet/pungent/pus-like breath when they are getting sick. But I would get it chekced out for sure, esp if it's been going on for a while. After all, a finger prick test is easy and relatively non-invasive.

[prone_to_wander]

Acetone breath can indicate ketosis. Which isn't good. I'd take him to the drs ASAP!