Diabetes can occur to anyone and everyone at any age. But, certain factors make you more susceptible to diabetes. Factors like having a close relative with diabetes matter a lot. In diabetes, the pancreas either does not produce or produces a low quantity of insulin. The body converts food into sugar. This sugar enters our bloodstream. Insulin helps our body cells to open up and digest this sugar. In the absence of insulin, body cells cannot digest sugar. Body cells starve to death. There is the increased amount of blood sugar in the body. This results in diabetes. Today we will be discussing Gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes occurs during pregnancy.
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What is gestational diabetes?
Gestational diabetes is diagnosed during pregnancy. During pregnancy, the mother’s body becomes resistant to insulin. The mother’s body needs more glucose to provide energy and nutrition to the fetus. Sometimes the pancreas cannot cope up with the increased demand of insulin production during pregnancy. The result is gestational diabetes. Unlike other diabetes, gestational diabetes is not permanent. It poses a great risk to mother and baby’s health. Having gestational diabetes increases the possibility of developing diabetes in future. You should consult your doctor immediately.
Factors affecting gestational diabetes
Anyone can develop gestational diabetes. On an average 5 to 10% of all pregnant ladies develop gestational diabetes. But, still, there are some factors that may be the reason for developing gestational diabetes. These factors are as follows:
- Have a relative with diabetes
- Age greater than 25
- Have a medical condition such as glucose intolerance
- If you are overweight
- Had gestational diabetes before
- If you had a big baby before
You can always lower your risk of getting gestational diabetes by adopting a healthy lifestyle. By following a good exercise routine and eating healthy.
Symptoms of Gestational diabetes
There are actually no symptoms of gestational diabetes. That is the reason, the doctor offers for the screening of gestational diabetes in between 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy.
Test for gestational diabetes
There are two main types of tests for gestational diabetes
- Glucose screening test
- Glucose tolerance test
Screening test
This test will detect your body’s capacity to efficiently produce insulin. In this test, the laboratory people will ask you to drink some sweet liquid. Glucose is measured after one hour. If your glucose level is in range, then no problem. But, if the levels are high, then this indicates that you might be having gestational diabetes.
Tolerance test
This is the confirmatory test for gestational diabetes. You should be fasting. The blood is taken for the test. You have to drink some sweet liquid as mentioned above. The blood tests are performed at an interval of one, two and three hours. If the results are high, then you have gestational diabetes.
Affect of gestational diabetes on pregnancy
Women keeping their glucose level in check do not have any issue during pregnancy. They happily sail through their pregnancy. There are certain side effects with gestational diabetes that you may face. You may have preterm labor and your baby will be premature, large size baby and c-section due to a large size of a baby.
Treatment for gestational diabetes
The treatment for gestational diabetes mainly involves following a good and healthy exercise plan and diet plan. The diet plan should consist of whole grains, fruits, vegetables etc that release sugar slowly. Medication should also be taken regularly to control your blood sugar level. Insulin injections are the most common treatment for gestational diabetes. The dose of these injections will be prescribed by the physician.