The gestational diabetes is a particular type of diabetes that is seen to form for the time when a woman is seemed to be pregnant. The diabetes is an effect of the hormonal change which a woman undergoes during the period of pregnancy.
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[su_spoiler title=”Will eating too much sugar cause gestational diabetes?” open=”no” style=”default” icon=”plus” anchor=”” class=””]Consuming sugary foods will not increase your risk for gestational diabetes. If you are diagnosed with gestational diabetes, it will be essential to manage your blood sugar levels.[/su_spoiler]
[su_spoiler title=”What foods should I eat to avoid gestational diabetes?” open=”no” style=”default” icon=”plus” anchor=”” class=””]Avoid foods like French-fries, white rice, candy, soda, and other sweets. Add whole-grain products & fruits like apple, pears, berries to your diet.[/su_spoiler]
[su_spoiler title=”Can gestational diabetes affect my baby?” open=”no” style=”default” icon=”plus” anchor=”” class=””]Untreated gestational diabetes can cause a major problem. Elevated blood glucose may end up in the baby’s blood & making the baby grow very large.[/su_spoiler]
[su_spoiler title=”What are the complications of gestational diabetes for the mother?” open=”no” style=”default” icon=”plus” anchor=”” class=””]Gestational diabetes can cause obesity, premature birth, breathing difficulty, low blood sugar & type 2 diabetes in late pregnancy.[/su_spoiler]
[su_spoiler title=”Is there any treatment for gestational diabetes?” open=”no” style=”default” icon=”plus” anchor=”” class=””]Gestational diabetes can be cured by medications & insulin depending on your blood glucose levels. Maintaining a proper diet & regular exercise can cure gestational diabetes. [/su_spoiler]
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Women respond to the hormonal insulin at the time of her pregnancy. During pregnancy, women go through an elevated level of insulin which is also known as the blood glucose.
According to the research, more than 18 percent of the women are affected by gestational diabetes today. It is important for every pregnant lady to treat it so that there lies no problems and baby should not suffer the complication.
Pregnancy is a very critical stage in the life of every woman. It is the stage of getting cheer as well as tension. Pregnant mothers always have a tension about the live growing inside her womb.
Mother would always wish to keep her baby in a sound fashion from the time he is inside her womb till the time he comes out in this world. But while doing this, she comes across variety of physical and mental complications.
Diabetes is physical condition that can take place when the lady is pregnant. There are varieties of causes due to which diabetes can attack her during pregnancy.
Causes of diabetes during pregnancy
When a pregnant lady consumes food, the digestive system breaks most of the food in the form of glucose. This sugary glucose gets inside the bloodstream and provides the scope to the cell to use it as a fuel.
This is probably done with the help of glucose present in the bloodstream. But, problem lies when your body is incapable in producing enough of insulin.
Sometimes, cell may also have some problem of responding to insulin. Diabetes can also cause due to presence of too much glucose in the blood. This glucose does not get converted into energy.
Even during pregnancy, hormonal changes in women make the cells less responsive to the insulin. Many would be moms does not face the problem as the pancreas helps in secreting more insulin if the glucose is incapable of secreting the same.
But, the task of pancreas is also to keep up the demand of increased insulin. But, if this is not done, the glucose level of individual in blood will become too high.
This is probably the result of gestational diabetes. Just after the baby is born, most of the women stops getting the effect of gestational diabetes.
Effect of diabetes in baby
Most of the ladies suffering from diabetes during the pregnancy period make the baby. You can make changes in your diet routine to keep your newborn baby out of this diabetic condition. If you have poorly controlled glucose in your body, this can lead to various consequences in your baby.
If the glucose level in your body is high, this can lead to supply of too much glucose in your baby’s blood. Thus, it becomes necessary for the pancreas of your baby to produce more insulin which will once again produce extra glucose.
Thus the excess blood sugar in the body of your baby will cause gaining extra weight of your baby. This weight gain of your baby is seen basically in the upper part of the body.
Due to the effect of diabetes in mother, baby can also be affected with macrosomia. This is a condition when the baby become too large and cannot enter into the birth canal.
Even the shoulder of the baby can get struck while coming out of the canal. This situation is known as shoulder dystocia. The surgeon needs to utilize a special maneuver in the process of delivering the baby.
Due to glucose content in the baby as a result of diabetic mother, the bones of the baby may also get fractured while delivering. But, this fracture however gets healed in the due course without much complication.
But, baby can also have damage of brain due to lack of oxygen while the process of delivery is carried on. If the baby is bigger in size than the normal size, there is a good chance that injury can occur in the vaginal area. It will be recommended for the lady to give birth with cesarean section.
Also babies with excessive fat in the skin layers will be continuing the trend and become overweight in childhood as well as when he grows up to be an adult.
It will be likely for your baby to get low blood sugar level as the body of the baby will be producing the extra insulin needed in the process.
You must feed your child with the breast milk immediately after the birth so that he gets proper nutrients to fight with variety of disorders.
The causes of getting diabetes during pregnancy
During the pregnancy period, hormones in the body of some women right from the placenta create a block over the insulin. This is basically a hormone that is responsible for metabolism of human body produced at the pancreas which converts sugar into energy.
During pregnancy when the body does this job, glucose level in the body raises to a height. This can be really dangerous as the increase in glucose level can create serious damage over the body organs and blood vessels.
Can diabetes during pregnancy affect baby?
Many women have a question about whether the diabetes during the gestation period can affect the baby. But there are cases where the women suffers from high glucose level during the pregnancy period but the baby after birth is really healthy and sound. But there are situations when baby gets complication or hurt due to the diabetic reason.
Macrosomia
If the baby growing inside your womb has larger than normal body, there is a good chance that he will get injured especially when the delivery process involves baby’s coming out from vagina. In such case doctor will suggest caesarian child.
Jaundice
If the pregnant lady suffers from diabetes, there is a chance that baby can suffer from Jaundice? As a result the skin of your baby becomes yellowish. Also the white portion of the baby’s eyes can become yellow. In order to save your baby from this condition, mother must go through diet check.
Symptoms
Mostly, pregnant women do not experience any early signs or symptoms of Gestational Diabetes. That’s the reason why you need to undergo screening tests. The screening tests generally take place between the 24th and 28th week of your pregnancy. The test is necessary to check your blood glucose levels.
However, some women do notice some faint signs of gestational diabetes. The symptoms are common in other forms of diabetes & also during your pregnancy. There is a thin line to differentiate it, so they are easily missed.
The symptoms of gestational diabetes include:
- Increased thirst
The urge to drink water would be quite frequent and you may want to drink a lot more than you usually do. You might feel thirsty even when you haven’t eaten something salty or done any work. The need for an extra glass of water would increase.
- Frequent urination
You may experience a frequent need to pee. The urination might be in large amounts. During early pregnancy, you may experience the same but usually light urination.
- Feeling tired
You may feel fatigued & lethargic even during the early day. This makes it difficult to differentiate from normal pregnancy fatigue. If you experience this kind of sign, it’s better to see your doctor prevent the risk of gestational diabetes.
- Having dry mouth
Experiencing a dry mouth is correlated with a frequent need to quench your increased thirst. You may tend to drink more water to get rid of the dehydrated feeling.
- Blurred vision
High blood glucose levels are directly linked to diabetes and can damage the small blood vessels that supply your retina. It can cause light sensitivity, flashes of light & damage to the retina. The other reason might also be the pregnancy hormones. Check with your doctor if you experience repeated distorted visions.
- Nausea
You may feel sick & even vomit. This symptom occurs when the blood sugar levels remain elevated for a longer time. It’s the ketones (when enough insulin isn’t produced, ketones build up in the blood, making it more acidic) which make you nauseous than the normal pregnancy nausea.
- Sugar in the urine
Your doctor might be regularly asking you for a urine sample. This is done to check the sugar in your urine. If the glucose levels are found to be high, the excess sugar can end up in the urine. This may indicate gestational diabetes.
- Frequent bladder or vaginal infections
One of the early signs of gestational diabetes is reoccurring vaginal infection, thrush or skin infection or even bladder infection. If you experience repeated infections of any of these, it’s time to consult your doctor.
