There are a lot of extra hormones released during pregnancy that can make anyone feel a little crazy while you're making a little human. Your body basically can't keep up and has difficulty managing the effects of nourishing a growing baby along with producing enough insulin to maintain regulation. The body's ability to effectively break down ingested sugars becomes hindered, causing a rise in blood sugar levels, which can be dangerous for both baby and mother if not monitored closely.

 

Potential risks of undiagnosed or untreated gestational diabetes lead to developmental issues in early weeks, large babies (>4kg/9lbs), difficult deliveries, an increased risk of baby becoming overweight and mother developing type 2 or type 1 (insulin-dependent) Diabetes in future.

 

The good news is that all types of diabetes can be managed and your baby will not be born with diabetes. Management strategies include:

• choosing a healthy diet

• achieving normal pregnancy weight gain

• being physically active - even 10 minutes of walking a day does wonders!

• check your blood sugars regularly

• take insulin, if directed to do so by your specialist team

 

It's important to work together with your maternal care team (doctors, midwives, etc.) to carefully manage your blood sugar levels. Achieving blood sugars in target range will help prevent labour and delivery complications. Once you've welcomed your little one, your hormone activity will return to pre-pregnancy status and gestational diabetes will no longer be of concern, unless you get pregnant again. Once you've experienced a pregnancy with gestational diabetes, there is a greater risk of developing gestational diabetes in future pregnancies or simply developing diabetes in future, so be sure to stay current with annual check-up to maintain optimal health.