Diabetes During Pregnancy?


by Ben Pena - Date: 2006-12-28 - Word Count: 352 Share This!

Your Blood Sugar During Pregnancy:

In women with diabetes, increasing hemoglobin A1C levels early in pregnancy - an indicator of poor blood sugar control - are associated with increasing risk of poor pregnancy outcomes according to a report in the journal Diabetes Care. In other words, when you have your blood sugar under control during your pregnancy, you are at a better place to have a healthier baby. In a study, pregnant women with higher hemoglobin levels had an array of poor outcomes with labor, such as stillbirth, miscarriages, neonatal death or a birth defect. The outcomes do vary from person to person and women with even higher blood sugars have had healthy babies.

Many people's advice will pertain to pregnant women with diabetes as well as those without it, such as maintaining a good diet, exercise, avoiding unhealthy habits (drinking, smoking, caffeine intake, etc.) and taking a prenatal vitamin that will give you enough folic acid. Your medical professional can help you choose the right prenatal vitamin for you.

During pregnancy, you need to lower your blood glucose levels as much as you can. You need to get them to as close to normal as possible. This is significant during your first trimester, because high blood glucose levels can cause a miscarriage or birth defect.

How to Control Your Blood Sugar:

If you are taking pills to help regulate your blood sugar, your medical professional will probably switch you to insulin injections. To keep your blood sugar low, you need to know what it is and that means constant monitoring. It is recommended that you do this about eight times a day.

You need to follow your doctor's meal plan for you. If you have hypoglycemia, it will need treatment. You'll need to keep giving yourself the insulin injections and adjusting the dose when needed. You will also need to maintain a healthy routine of exercise. With all of these combined, you will increase your chances of having a healthy baby.

Your Blood Glucose Level Goals -

Before Meals:
Whole Blood Glucose Levels - 70-100mg/dl and Plasma Glucose Reading - 80-110mg/dl
Two Hours After Meals - under 140mg/dl and Plasma Glucose Reading - under 155mg/dl


Related Tags: pregnancy symptom, diabetes pregnancy, nutrition pregnancy

Ben Pena is an author of PregnancyClass.com

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