Diet During Pregnancy if Gestational Diabetes

Diet During Pregnancy if Gestational Diabetes


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Diet in Pregnancy if Gestational Diabetes

Diabetes that occurs during pregnancy (in case of approximately 4 % of women) is called gestational diabetes. If the disease is detected, a woman and her baby should be provided with adequate treatment and the condition of their health should be taken under control.

In case a pregnant woman is said to have the disease, she’s likely to suffer from the following symptoms: placentofetal insufficiency, deficiency of insulin in blood and an increased risk of thrombosis.

There is an increased risk of complications while a fetus is developing: inherent malformations, bigger than necessary size, a delay in the development of nervous and skeletal systems. This may make the process of labor harder or even be a reason for birth injuries.

How do You Prevent the Disease?

  • You should limit the amount of salt, sugar, honey and sweets you consume. It is necessary to eat foods that contain fats and carbohydrates separately.
  • In case you are overweight, it’s necessary to lose weight.
  • If you think that you have diabetes, consult a doctor that specializes in it.
  • You need to exercise outdoors (walking, cycling, and yoga). These exercises will decrease the risk of cardiovascular diseases.

Diet in Case You Have Gestational Diabetes

In case you have the disease, you can take the condition of your health under control with the help of the following diet:

  • You need to eat 5-6 times a day. 3 times a day you should have substantial meals and 2-3 times a day you should have a snack.
  • You should limit the consumption of light carbohydrates as much as it is possible (potato, sweets, farinaceous food).
  • Refuse eating convenience foods.
  • Your diet should consist of the following: 40 % of carbohydrates (complex ones are preferable), up to 30 % of good fats and 30-60 % of protein foods.
  • You need to eat vegetables and fruits 5 times a day in small portions. There shouldn’t be any starchy vegetables and fruits.
  • An hour after you eat, measure the level of sugar in blood using a glucometer.
  • Calculate calories. For 1 kg of your weight 30-35 calories are required.

Keep in mind that during the course of pregnancy, a woman gains 10-15 kg. It’s fine. That’s why you need to calculate the amount of calories you consume per day in accordance with how much you weigh currently. In 10 % of cases, following a diet turns out to be not enough. That’s why your doctor may prescribe you certain drugs or injections of insulin.

Your Approximate Diet for a Day

  • Breakfast: oatmeal porridge cooked on water and one fruit. Tea with milk, a piece of rye bread and 10 g of butter.
  • Snack: fresh cottage cheese with bran and a glass of kefir.
  • Lunch: vegetable soup, a portion of buckwheat with a small piece of boiled meat, an apple and a glass of brier decoction.
  • Afternoon snack: tea with milk.
  • Dinner: Boiled or stewed fish with cabbage, carrot cutlets prepared on steam and tea.
  • Possible snack: a glass of kefir.

The Process of Labor in Case of Gestational Diabetes

As a rule, the disease disappears once your baby is born. Only in 20 % of cases, gestational diabetes becomes diabetes. We have already mentioned the fact that there may occur complications during labor because of gestational diabetes. For example, a baby can be quite big and, due to this fact, a mother may be injured during the process of labor.

A big baby cases problems already on the stage of labor pains. In the majority of cases, the procedure of caesarian section will be carried out so that a baby’s shoulders are not injured.

Because of this disease, many babies are born with a low level of sugar in blood. It’s easy to rectify the situation. Only breastfeeding is required. Medical treatment is not necessary. If a mother’s milk is not enough, there is an option of bottle feeding. There is a need to keep the level of sugar in the blood of a baby. Doctors will measure it before you feed your baby and 2 hours.

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