Gestational Diabetes Diet and Symptoms Guide

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Gestational Diabetes Risks

November 30th, 2009 Susan Posted in Risks

Your Chances:

Any woman can develop gestational diabetes when pregnant, but some are at greater risk:

  • Women older than age 25 – Women who are older than 25 years of age are more likely to develop gestational diabetes
  • Personal or family history of diabetes – You are at an increased chance of developing gestational diabetes if you or a close family member, such as a parent or sibling has type 2 diabetes.  You also have a higher risk of getting gestational diabetes with your 2nd pregnancy if you developed gestational diabetes in a prior pregnancy or if you delivered a baby that weighed more than 9 pounds.
  • Obesity – If you are significantly overweight with a body mass index greater than 30, you are more likely to develop gestational diabetes.
  • Race – For unclear reasons, women who are Black, Asian, Hispanic or American Indian are more likely to develop gestational diabetes.
  • Having sugar in your urine
  • Having too much amniotic fluid (a condition called polyhydramnios).

Your Baby:

Increased complications can happen to your baby when you have gestational diabetes, such as:

  • Low blood sugar – Some babies with mothers with gestational diabetes can develop low blood sugar (hypoglemia) shortly after birth due to their own insulin production being high.  Severe episodes of the problem may cause seizures in the baby.  Prompt feeding and intravenous glucose solution can return your baby’s blood sugar level to normal.
  • Respiratory distress syndrome – If your baby is delivered early, a condition called respiratory distress syndrome can happen which causes difficult breathing.  Babies born to women who have gestational diabetes, typically have more breathing problems than babies born at the same gestational age.
  • Jaundice – Yellow discoloration of the skin and the whites of the eyes may occur if the baby’s liver isn’t mature enough to break down bilrubin, which is formed to recycle old or damaged red blood cells.  Jaundice in itself isn’t a big concern, but must be watched with careful monitoring.
  • Type 2 diabetes later in life – Women that have developed gestational diabetes have an increased chance of developing obesity and type 2 diabetes later in life.
  • Excess growth – The extra glucose that crosses the placenta will trigger your baby’s pancreas to make more insulin and cause your baby to grow large (macrosomia).  A large baby can bring complications to the delivery room as the baby can get wedged in the birth canal.  A Cesarean birth will be more likely for women with gestational diabetes.
  • Developmental problems – If you have gestational diabetes, your child may have an increased risk of motor skill development, such as jumping, walking or other activities that require balance and coordination.  There is also an increased risk of attention problems or hyperactivitiy disorders.

Your Health:

Gestational diabetes can increase your personal risk of the following:

  • Preeclampsia - Gestational diabetes increases the risk of preeclampsia,, a condition characterized by high blood pressure and excess protein in the  urine after the 20th week of pregnancy.  If left untreated, the preeclampsia can lead to serious or even life-threatening complications for both mom and baby.
  • Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs) – Women with gestational diabetes experience twice the number of urinary tract infections during pregnancy than other pregnant women, possibly due to the excess glucose in the urine.
  • Future diabetes – If you have gestational diabetes, you have an increased risk of developing the condition in future pregnancies and type 2 diabetes when you get older.  However, making lifestyle changes like eating healthy food and exercising can help reduce the risk of future type 2 diabetes.  Women who have a history of gestational diabetes and have reached their ideal body weight after delivery, fewer than 25 percent will develop type 2 diabetes.

Diabetes can affect the developing baby throughout the pregnancy and can result in birth defects or an increased rate of miscarriage.  Many of the birth defects that may occur affect major organs such as the brain and heart.


More Information About Gestational Diabetes
Gestational Diabetes Diet – Gestational Diabetes and Blood Sugar Levels
Gum Disease Increases Risk of Gestational Diabetes – Causes of Gestational Diabetes


Pregnancy Induced Hypertension

April 24th, 2009 Susan Posted in Risks

When hypertension occurs during pregnancy, the condition is called toxemia or preeclampsia.  Preeclampsia can happen during the 2nd half of pregnancy.  Your doctor will be aware of your condition if you demonstrate either: high blood pressure, swelling that does not go away and large amounts of protein in your urine.

Preeclampsia is most common with women during their first pregnancy and with women who have a close relative (like their mother or sister) who’ve had pregnancy induced hypertension.  The risk is also higher with women carrying multiple babies, teenage mothers, women who’ve developed gestational diabetes or women older than 40 years of age.  Other women at high risk are those who had high blood pressure or kidney disease before they became pregnant.  The cause of this condition is unknown.

If you have high blood pressure, it doesn’t necessarily mean you have preeclampsia.  Your doctor will watch you closely for any changes such as excessive swelling or protein in your urine.  While swelling is seen as normal during pregnancy, more serious swelling is when it doesn’t go away after resting and it’s obvious in your face and hands.  Or if you experience rapid weight gain of more than 5 pounds in one week.

Tests for Pregnancy Induced Hypertension

Currently there are no tests to determine if you have pregnancy induced hypertension.  Your blood pressure is checked at each doctor’s visit and he/she should be able to catch early signs of preeclampsia if you have a sudden big rise in blood pressure.  A simple urine test will be tell if there is protein in your urine.  If you do have signs of Preeclampsia, you may have to make more frequent visits to your doctor each week.

Preeclampsia Risks

Preeclampsia can prevent the placenta from getting enough blood which means the baby will get less and nutrients.  This may contribute to low birth weight and other issues for the baby.   Most women who have this condition will still go on to deliver healthy babies.  There are a few women who may develop the condition eclampsia (with seizures) which is quite serious for both the mom and the baby.  Fortunately, pregnancy induced hypertension is detected early in women who get regular prenatal care and most of these issues can be prevented.

Treatment for Pregnancy Induced Hypertension

If you have pregnancy induced hypertension, the best way to protect both you and your baby is to deliver the baby.  It may not be always possible, depending on where you are during your pregnancy.  If the delivery isn’t possibly because it’s too early in your pregnancy, there are steps to manage pregnancy induced hypertension until the baby can be delivered.  The steps will require you to make your blood pressure drop, with bed-rest or medicines, and keeping a close eye on you and your baby. In some cases, hospitalization is necessary.

Cutting back on salt can help reduce high blood pressure when you are NOT pregnant, but when you are pregnant you will need salt to keep up the flow of fluid in your body.  Your doctor will tell you how much salt to eat and how much water you should be drinking daily.

Your doctor may tell you to take extra calcium or aspirin to prevent pregnancy induced hypertension.  Your doctor may also tell you to lie on your left side when you rest to improve blood flow and take off weight to large blood vessels.  There are many doctors that give magnesium sulfate to their patients during labor and for a few days after birth to help prevent eclampsia.  You will need to talk to your doctor regarding these things.

Symptoms of Pregnancy Induced Hypertension

  • Severe headaches
  • Excessive swelling of hands and feet
  • Vomiting of blood
  • Small amounts of urine or no urine at all
  • Blood in urine
  • Dizziness
  • Excessive Nausea or Vomiting
  • Rapid Heartbeat
  • Ringing or Buzzing sound in ears
  • Drowsiness
  • Fever
  • Double Vision
  • Blurred Vision
  • Sudden blindness
  • Pain the abdomen (tummy)

See more gestational diabetes risks

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What Factors Will Increase Risk of Gestational Diabetes?

April 23rd, 2009 Susan Posted in Risks

The American Diabetes Association says that you’re considered high risk for developing gestational diabetes and should be screened early if you meet any of the following:

  • If you’re considered obese – Your body mass index is 30+
  • If you have had gestational diabetes in a past pregnancy
  • If you have a strong family history of diabetes

    • Although some doctors will decide to screen you early if:

  • Sugar is found in your urine (urine is tested at each prenatal visit)
  • If you’ve given birth to a big baby (9 pounds or more)
  • If you’ve had an unexplained stillbirth
  • If you have had a baby with a birth defect
  • If your blood pressure is high

    • Many women who’ve developed gestational diabetes don’t have risk factors.  It’s a matter of routine for an OB doctor to order screening at 24 to 28 weeks of pregnancy.  There are women who are considered low risk that may not need the screening test at all.

    You fit into the “low risk” group if you fit the following criteria:

  • You’re younger than 25 years of age
  • You maintain a healthy weight
  • You are not a member of any ethnic group that has a high chance of developing diabetes: Hispanic, Native American, African, South or East Asian, Pacific Island and indigenous Australian ancestry.
  • None of your family has diabetes
  • You have never had a high result on a blood sugar test
  • You have not had an overly large baby or other pregnancy complications associated with gestational diabetes

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