Diabetes in Pregnancy-A quick review

Okay Vincy Mamas, this is our last week devoted to diabetes in pregnancy. Hopefully, you are all hanging n there, enjoying your pregnancies and staying healthy. To recap the past few weeks in a nutshell:

1) Diabetes that develops during pregnancy but goes away after delivery is called Gestational diabetes. It still needs to be controlled carefully and may need medications to achieve this.{{more}} Even though it goes away after delivery, it is important to remember that you now have a much higher chance of developing Type 2 diabetes in future. So you need to be tested regularly and try to maintain a healthy weight.

2) All women at high risk for gestational diabetes need to be tested during weeks 24-28 by using a glucose challenge. You are at high risk if you are overweight, have been told you had pre-diabetes in the past, have polycystic ovarian syndrome, multiple family members with diabetes, are over age 25 years or are from a higher risk ethnic group. PLEASE SPEAK TO YOUR DOCTOR ABOUT BEING TESTED.

3) If you have diabetes before becoming pregnant, PLEASE defer pregnancy until your blood sugars are within good range: ideally with a hemoglobin A1C less than 7%. There are risks of birth defects when pregnancy happens in the midst of high blood sugars and all sorts of complications are possible if the high levels continue. So do your best to prepare your body as a healthy home for your baby when the time is right. If your diabetes is out of control and you become pregnant without planning on it, contact your doctor RIGHT AWAY so that you can be watched more closely and medications adjusted more quickly.

4) Pregnancy is not a time to go crazy and eat everything you see even if you do not have diabetes. Sure, sure, you are eating for two (or three as it was in my case with twins!), but you still need to eat healthy foods in reasonable amounts. Your doctor will tell you if you are not gaining enough weight, believe me. But gaining too much weight is not good for you or baby. So put back the third roti and have some fruit instead…

5) Once you have been diagnosed with diabetes, you may be given a short trial period for dietary changes to see if this brings your blood sugars down. Give it your best shot, as it is often just a few weeks as a trial. If your blood sugars do not come down to a good level, you will need some medication to help you out.

6) Insulin is the most widely used medication for diabetes in pregnancy because it has the longest safety record for use in pregnancy. It may not be fun or easy, but it works well, and that is the main goal here.

7) Lucky number seven: KEEP ALL DOCTOR’S APPOINTMENTS!!! Please do stay in good contact with your obstetrician (pregnancy doctor) and your diabetes doctors. This is one of the most critical times for people with diabetes because two lives are being affected. It may seem like harassment sometimes, but remember we are here to help you.

And that’s the highlighted version of this mini-series 🙂 Many blessings to all the Vincy Mamas and their excited families. Stay healthy and safe!

Anita Ramsetty, MD
endodocs@endocrinehelp.com
Medical Director Endocrine Care Group
www.endocrinehelp.com
Tel: 843-798-4227