Diabetes in Pregnancy - Freedom from Diabetes
High blood sugar is harmful for anyone, but especially during pregnancy. Many women don’t know they have diabetes until a routine check-up reveals it. If you are pregnant with diabetes, keeping blood sugar in the normal range is crucial for your health and your baby’s development.
Gestational diabetes is diabetes that develops during pregnancy, often in first-time mothers. It usually goes away after birth, but it increases the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes later. Eating healthy, exercising, and managing stress can help prevent and control it. Testing before pregnancy is important to reduce risks.
During the first eight weeks of pregnancy, your baby’s organs like the brain, heart, and lungs begin forming. High blood sugar at this stage can cause birth defects, premature birth, breathing problems, low blood sugar in the newborn, or even miscarriage and stillbirth.
If you already have diabetes before pregnancy, you are at higher risk for eye problems, high BP, kidney issues, heart disease, and pre-eclampsia (dangerously high BP with protein in urine). Good control of blood sugar before conception reduces these risks.
Before pregnancy, tests should check BP, eyes, heart, nerves, kidneys, and thyroid. Stop smoking and drinking alcohol, as they raise the risk of complications. A nutritionist can guide you on diet and vitamins like folic acid, calcium, and iron. Safe exercise during pregnancy helps manage blood sugar, BP, and stress.
Target blood sugar levels during pregnancy are: pre-meal 90 mg/dL or less, 1 hour after meals 130–140 or less, 2 hours after meals 120 or less, and HbA1C ideally under 6.5%. Working closely with your doctor ensures a healthy pregnancy and baby.
To Read more about this, visit our blog.
English
Dutch