If a woman does not already have diabetes, she may acquire gestational diabetes during pregnancy. Gestational diabetes affects 2 to 10% of pregnancies each year. Taking care of your gestational diabetes will help ensure that both you and your unborn child have good pregnancies.
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What is Gestational Diabetes?
When your body can’t create enough insulin while you’re pregnant, you get gestational diabetes. Your pancreas produces the hormone insulin, which functions as a key to allow blood sugar to enter your body’s cells for use as fuel.
Your body produces more hormones during pregnancy, along with other changes like weight growth. Insulin resistance is a condition where your body’s cells use insulin less efficiently as a result of these changes. Your body requires more insulin if you have insulin resistance.
In late pregnancy, insulin resistance is a common occurrence in pregnant women. However, some females already have insulin resistance prior to conception. They require more insulin at the beginning of pregnancy and are more likely to develop gestational diabetes.
Related Health Problems
Being pregnant with gestational diabetes increases your risk of having high blood pressure. Additionally, it may raise your chance of having a big baby that requires a caesarean section (C-section). If you have gestational diabetes, your infant is more vulnerable to:
- Weighing nine pounds or more, which can make delivery more challenging.
- Early birth, which can result in breathing and other issues
- A low blood sugar level
- Later in life developing type 2 diabetes
After your baby is born, the sugar levels in your blood will often return to normal. However, type 2 diabetes develops in roughly 50% of pregnant women with gestational diabetes. By regaining a healthy body weight after birth, you can reduce your risk.
Treatment for Gestational Diabetes

You have a lot of options for managing gestational diabetes. Attend all your prenatal checkups and adhere to your treatment schedule, which may include:
- Checking blood sugar: Ensuring that your blood sugar levels remain within a safe range by checking them.
- Eating nutritious meals at the appropriate times and in the proper amounts: Observe a diet recommended by your doctor or nutritionist.
- Being energetic: Regular moderate-intensity exercise, like brisk walking, reduces blood sugar and increases insulin sensitivity, reducing the amount of insulin your body needs. Always consult your doctor before engaging in any physical activity to see if there are any you should avoid.
- Observing your infant: Your doctor will assess the growth and development of your child.
Your doctor may suggest insulin, metformin, or other medications if a good diet and regular exercise are insufficient to control your blood sugar.
Preventing Gestational Diabetes
It is not always possible to prevent gestational diabetes, a kind of diabetes that appears during pregnancy and is impacted by several variables, including genetics and hormonal changes. But you may take precautions to lower your risk and ensure a healthy pregnancy. Here are a few advice:
- Maintain a healthy weight: Aim to acquire weight within the suggested range and begin pregnancy at a healthy weight. Gaining too much weight increases the chance of developing gestational diabetes. If you want to know how much weight to gain in your particular condition, go to your doctor.
- Maintain a diet: Eat a well-rounded diet that contains whole grains, lean proteins, fruits, vegetables, and healthy fats to maintain a balanced diet. Eat less processed and sugary meals. Concentrate on consuming complex carbs, which have a more gradual effect on blood sugar levels, including whole grains.
- Have a check on portion sizes: To avoid overeating, keep your portion proportions under control. To assist you in developing a balanced food plan, think about speaking with a certified dietitian with expertise in gestational diabetes.
- Stay physically active: Take part in frequent, safe physical activity while pregnant. With the consent of your healthcare physician, set a goal of 150 minutes (about 2 and a half hours) or more of moderate-intensity exercise spread out over the course of the week. Prenatal yoga, swimming, and brisk walking are all healthy activities.
- Check your blood sugar levels: If you have a high risk of developing gestational diabetes during pregnancy, your doctor may advise routine blood sugar checks. As directed, monitor your levels and abide by their guidelines.
- Stay hydrated: Drink water all day long to be properly hydrated and boost your general health.
- Get regular prenatal care: Attend all prenatal appointments as scheduled to monitor your health and the growth of your unborn child. Your healthcare professional will do a gestational diabetes screening and offer the appropriate advice and assistance.
Final Words
Managing gestational diabetes is crucial for a healthy pregnancy, to sum up. Women can decrease their chance of difficulties for themselves as well as their unborn children by being proactive in managing their blood sugar levels.
Women with gestational diabetes can effectively control their disease and increase the likelihood of a healthy pregnancy by following a healthy diet, getting regular exercise, monitoring blood sugar levels, and receiving the right prenatal care.
Working closely with healthcare professionals is crucial to creating a personalized plan and receiving the support and direction required during the pregnancy. Women can improve their general health and well-being while giving their unborn children the greatest possible start by prioritizing the management of gestational diabetes.