Introduction
Diabetes is one of the most common lifestyle diseases of the human race. Every 1 in 5 individuals is usually affected with diabetes within their average life span. However, some women who are expecting children or any in their early stages of maternity, are often subjected to diabetes disease. Diabetes during pregnancy is also referred to as Gestational Diabetes as it is detected during the first pregnancy routine check-ups of an expecting woman.
What is Diabetes during pregnancy?
Gestational diabetes or diabetes during pregnancy is therefore a lifestyle disease affecting few expecting women in their first trimester of pregnancy. During the initial routine check-up of blood sugar levels, women are found to be diabetic with high blood sugar levels in their bodies.
Diabetes during pregnancy could be responsible for affecting the health of the baby after birth and could pose a future risk of various health issues to the new-born child. Hence early detection and prompt treatment will help a woman to control her high blood sugar level. Mostly lifestyle changes, a well-balanced pregnancy diet, and exercise are the key factors responsible to keep gestational diabetes at bay.
How is Pregnancy Diabetes detected?
Diabetes during pregnancy is used detected in the 1st trimester of pregnancy during routing Blood Sugar monitoring tests at an authorized medical facility. A test on Random Blood Sugar (RBS), Fasting Blood sugar (FBS), or Post Prandial (PP) Blood sugar levels for a pregnant woman is used to determine the risk of Gestational diabetes in most of the medical test centers in the world.
Key Levels of Blood sugar to suggest Pregnancy Diabetes
- Below 140 mg/dL: Normal, no diabetes
- Between 140 mg/dL – 199 mg/dL: Pre-diabetic or borderline state
- Above 200 mg/dL: Highly diabetic
Key reasons of developing pregnancy or gestational diabetes
Although researchers and scientists have tried their best means, they not been able to find out the exact cause if high blood sugar in some women during their pregnancy phases of life. Yet the main reasons of getting into diabetes during pregnancy are the following:
- Being obese or overweight during pregnancy
- Hereditary and genetic factors and strong diabetic history in family and parents
- Poor food eating habits – taking an imbalanced diet, highly fatty and sugary foods over a long period of time
- Lack of regular exercise causing weight gain before pregnancy
Warning signs and symptoms of gestational diabetes
Here are some of the most common symptoms using diabetes during pregnancy:
- Excessive Fatigue, gets tired easily
- Frequent urination episodes throughout a day
- Excessive thirst and increased water intake
- Slow healing of wounds, and ulcers for advanced gestational diabetic patients.
- Body pain and tension headaches due to diabetic after effects.
Therefore, during pregnancy, it is essential to proactively monitor blood sugar levels and visit the medical facility for check-ups regularly.
Effects on pregnancy with diabetes patients
Gestational Diabetes is an early precursor of Type 2 Diabetes in pregnant women. There is a risk associated with diabetes through pregnancy both for the baby as well as the mother. Below are the major effects on the pregnancy of the new-born once the mother is affected:
- Breathing issues with infants after childbirth.
- Premature delivery of the baby due to high blood sugar.
- Overweight babies due to overgrowth of body parts of the child.
- Obese children who are at an increased risk of contracting Type 2 Diabetes in the future.
How to Prevent Gestational Diabetes
Pregnancy Diabetes can be prevented by following a proper diet, exercise, and also with good living habits before and during pregnancy
- Follow a simple balanced diet comprising of Fruits, vegetables, and fibers.
- Switch to low carb and less fatty foods before pregnancy to keep control of cholesterol and sugar levels in the body
- Spend at least 30-40 minutes on a brisk walk or yoga to keep your body fit and free from accumulating unwanted fat or sugars in the body
- Maintain a daily sleeping habit of at least 7-8 hours a day during and before pregnancy.
- If you are an obese person, make every effort to lose weight and maintain your BMI (Basal Metabolic Rate). This is an essential step to achieve before getting pregnant to avoid Pregnancy diabetes.
Conclusion
Diabetes during the pregnancy phase is a matter of concern and needs to be taken care of immediately with proper diet, exercise, and routine health check-ups on a periodic basis. Consequently, this will help your new born to be healthy and stay happy all the time.
We hope our article on Pregnancy diabetes will help you to be vigilant and concerned about your pregnancy health and take up the necessary steps to rule out and check diabetes during your pregnancy period to lead to a safe and healthy life going forward.
