What is gestational diabetes?
Gestational diabetes is a condition that occurs in pregnant women who did not have diabetes before their pregnancy. It causes high blood sugar levels that can be harmful to you and your baby. Gestational diabetes usually occurs during the second or third trimester.
What causes gestational diabetes?
Insulin is a hormone produced by your pancreas. It helps your body break down glucose, or sugar, into energy. As your body and hormones change with pregnancy, your cells have a harder time using insulin and blood sugar levels rise. This is called insulin resistance. All women will develop some degree of insulin resistance when they are pregnant, but most can overcome this by producing more insulin. Women who can’t develop gestational diabetes.
We don’t know why some women develop gestational diabetes and others don’t. But being overweight before and gaining weight during pregnancy seems to play an important role. Another risk factors include:
- History of gestational diabetes with previous pregnancy
- Family history of diabetes
- Not be physically active
- Having polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
- Having given birth to a baby weighing more than 9 kg during a previous pregnancy
Women of certain races and ethnicities are also more likely to develop gestational diabetes. If you are African American, Hispanic, Asian American, or American Indian, your risk is higher.
What are the symptoms of gestational diabetes?
There are usually no obvious symptoms associated with gestational diabetes. Some women may notice that they are more thirsty or need to go to the bathroom more often. These are also normal pregnancy symptoms. It can be difficult to tell whether these symptoms are caused by pregnancy or gestational diabetes.
How to test for gestational diabetes?
If you don’t have any risk factors, your healthcare provider will test you for gestational diabetes between 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy. If you or your family have a history of diabetes or gestational diabetes, you will likely be tested much earlier.
The test generally includes a initial glucose test. During this test, you will drink a sugary drink. An hour later you will have blood drawn and your blood sugar levels checked. If your blood sugar level is above 190 mg/dl, this indicates gestational diabetes. A blood sugar level of less than 140 mg/dl is within normal limits and you have passed the glucose tolerance test.
If your blood sugar levels were higher than expected, you will have a second glucose tolerance test. This time you will drink a substance with even more sugar and have blood drawn every hour for the next three hours. If you fail two of the three measurements, you have gestational diabetes.
What are the complications of gestational diabetes?
Untreated gestational diabetes can cause problems for both mom and baby. Some complications Your baby is at increased risk of including:
- High birth weight – babies who are over 9kg can get stuck in the birth canal and require a caesarean section.
- Low blood sugar – sometimes the baby’s blood sugar levels drop too low after birth. If it is a severe fall, seizures may occur.
- Premature labor – High blood sugar can cause the baby to be born prematurely, or the size of the baby may require premature delivery.
- Breathing problems – babies born too early may have trouble breathing because their lungs are not fully developed.
- Mortality – The risk of stillbirth is higher in women with gestational diabetes
- Higher risk of obesity and type II diabetes later in life
Possible complications for mom include:
- Increased risk of hypertension and pre-eclampsia
- Increased risk of needing a C-section because the baby is too big to fit through the birth canal
- The risk of developing gestational diabetes in another pregnancy is higher
- Higher risk of type II diabetes after delivery
What are the treatments for gestational diabetes?
Treatments for gestational diabetes include lifestyle changes, monitoring your blood sugar levels, and medications, if needed. Lifestyle changes, such as watching what you eat and exercising, can help you maintain and gain an appropriate amount of weight. Limiting sweets and processed carbohydrates will help prevent spikes and crashes in your blood sugar levels.
Your healthcare provider may ask you to monitor your blood sugar levels with a blood glucose meter. These meters measure blood sugar with a small drop of blood from a finger prick. You will check yourself several times a day to make sure your blood sugar levels are within normal limits.
Sometimes your blood sugar levels can’t be maintained with diet and exercise alone. If this is the case, your provider may prescribe oral diabetes medications or insulin injections. Insulin injections are the preferred treatment because they are safe for you and your baby. Research is still ongoing to find out the long-term effects of oral medications
Can I prevent gestational diabetes?
Unfortunately, there is no surefire way to prevent gestational diabetes. There are a few lifestyle changes you can make to lower your risk. Eating healthy, exercising and watching your weight gain are important changes to make, especially if you had gestational diabetes in a previous pregnancy.
Along with healthy eating, Pink Stork’s Total Prenatal + DHA can start you on a healthy path to pregnancy. Adding to ours Myo/Chiro Inositol Blend 40:1 can help support your hormones before, during and after your pregnancy.
What happens after the baby is born?
For most women, gestational diabetes goes away shortly after the baby is born. Your health care provider should test you for diabetes 6 to 12 weeks after delivery. If your blood sugar is still high, you may have type II diabetes. Even if your blood sugar levels return to normal, you should be screened for diabetes every 1 to 3 years, as your risk of developing type II diabetes is greater. Eating healthy and losing weight can help prevent diabetes in the future.
Bibliographical references:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022). Gestational diabetes and pregnancy.
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. (2017). Gestational diabetes symptoms and causes.
Mayo Clinic. (2022). Gestational Diabetes.
