Monday 5 October 2009

Treatment For Gestational Diabetes

By Moses Wright

Diabetes that develops during pregnancy is called gestational diabetes. If a woman has diabetes before she is pregnant, this is called pre-existing diabetes, not gestational diabetes.

About four percent of pregnancies are affected by gestational diabetes. The hormone that encourages the growth of the fetus is suspected as a cause of gestational diabetes since it inhibits the mother's ability to metabolize glucose.

Since gestational diabetes occurs late in a pregnancy, it does not pose a risk of birth defects. The baby can be affected by increasing the baby's body mass which makes the baby susceptible to injury during birth.

Newborns of mothers who had gestational diabetes are prone to breathing problems. The newborns may also have very low blood glucose levels at birth and be susceptible to obesity and type II diabetes later in life.

Testing for gestational diabetes includes drinking a glucose solution and timed blood testing. A blood sample may be drawn at the beginning of the test. Women are typically tested again an hour after drinking a glucose solution and may be tested after a longer period of time.

Diabetic diets are the first treatment for gestational diabetes. The obstetrician may have the pregnant woman with gestational diabetes meet with a dietician or nutritionist who will devise a diabetic diet.

Three meals and two snacks are typically included in the diabetic diet for gestational diabetes. Food intake is generally not necessarily restricted, but it instructs the pregnant woman to eat a variety of foods from certain food groups for each meal and snack. In exchange list with the food groups and examples of foods and serving sizes for each food group may be given to the pregnant woman as a reference.

Pregnant women with gestational diabetes are required to check their blood sugar levels multiple times during the day. If the gestational diabetes is not well controlled with diet, the pregnant woman may have to take insulin injections.

Women and newborns rarely have lasting effects from gestational diabetes after birth. The woman may have an increased risk of type II diabetes. The effects of gestational diabetes are usually minimal if it is properly managed.

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