What Is Gestational Diabetes?

What is Gestational Diabetes?

Julia Hanf

Gestational diabetes is when a pregnant woman who has never had diabetes develops diabetes in the twenty-fourth to twenty-eighth week of pregnancy. There are reportedly 135,000 cases of gestational diabetes every year in the United States. While it is a serious condition, women diagnosed with gestational diabetes can and do deliver healthy babies. With the proper medical care, a healthy diet, and controlled weight gain the risks of this type of diabetes are minimized.

To eliminate the possibility that a woman has gestational diabetes, her physician will perform one of two tests. Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (One Step): after a pregnant woman has not eaten anything for a period of four to eight hours, her blood glucose level is tested. Then she will drink a concoction that is extremely high in sugar content and be tested again in approximately two hours. Two Step: this test requires the pregnant woman to drink the above mentioned concoction first, without the fasting period. Then after one hour, her blood glucose level is taken. A non-diabetic woman will have a normal reading at this time. A woman who has a high level of blood glucose will be re-tested by means of the Oral Glucose Tolerance Test to be certain that she has gestational diabetes.

It is not known for sure why gestational diabetes occurs. However, theories suggest that the developing baby produces hormones that block the mother's ability to create enough insulin to keep blood glucose levels normal. Due to the changes that her body is undergoing, she may need up to three times as much insulin as normal to eliminate the excess sugar in her blood stream. The excess of sugar in the blood can be directed to the fetus, through the placenta, causing a condition called Macrosomia or simply put, "fat baby."

There can be risks involved for both the mother and her baby: To avoid possible injury to a macrosomic infant a caesarian section may be performed. The infant may experience low blood glucose levels. The infant may experience jaundice. The newborn may experience low mineral levels in their blood. The newborn may experience breathing trouble upon birth. The risk of obesity is higher for these children. The mother and her child stand at higher risk for developing Type 2 diabetes. Future pregnancies are at higher risk of gestational diabetes.

In order to steer clear of risks to both mother and her fetus, gestational diabetes needs to be caught and dealt with promptly. A physician will recommend a nutritious diet and safe exercise plan. Moderating carbohydrate intake and exercise helps to control weight gain. An extreme weight increase leads to complications for the mother in addition to the instant and potential risks to the infant. If Insulin is required to manage blood glucose levels, the physician will explain how to take it. Keeping an eye on the blood glucose level is another way to steer clear of danger.

Gestational diabetes corrects itself on its own after delivery. The placenta is not making hormones that have an effect on the mother's capability to manufacture insulin. It is strongly urged to get another glucose test approximately six weeks after delivering to make certain that Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes was not mistakenly diagnosed as gestational diabetes. Also, having another test executed will also evaluate the possibility of getting Type 2 diabetes in the future.

Women who have had gestational diabetes, and the children born under those conditions, can diminish the menace of developing Type 2 diabetes by making simple healthy changes in the foods they eat and how much they exercise. Eating healthy and exercise are necessary to lose weight especially with the fact that the leading cause in the development of Type 2 diabetes is obesity.

Julia Hanf author of the book How To Play the Diabetes Diet Game and Win Through a real life crisis Julia figured out how to live diabetes free. Visit http://www.yourdiabetescure.com and learn more about your solution for diabetes.