What We Want You to Know About Gestational Diabetes

Every woman wants her pregnancy to go smoothly, but complications can arise, and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a common one. This form of diabetes affects up to 9% of pregnancies in the United States. More alarming still, the rate of GDM increased by 30% between 2016 and 2020 in the US.

Since November is National Diabetes Month, the team of obstetric and pregnancy specialists at Bay Area Physicians for Women’s Health thought it would be a good idea to review gestational diabetes here. Let’s take a look.

Gestational diabetes and pregnancy

The simplest definition of gestational diabetes is diabetes that develops during pregnancy, often in the later stages of pregnancy. We point this out because the condition isn’t associated with developmental issues in unborn children, but more so with the mother’s health and childbirth.

Researchers believe that GDM occurs when pregnancy hormones released by the placenta block insulin. Insulin is an important hormone that your pancreas produces to regulate the levels of glucose in your bloodstream. So, when you have gestational diabetes, you develop insulin resistance, which can lead to dangerously high levels of blood sugar.

Many women don’t experience any symptoms of gestational diabetes — in most cases, the condition is discovered through routine testing for this common pregnancy development.

Risk factors for gestational diabetes

Though any woman can develop gestational diabetes, some have risk factors that make them more vulnerable to the pregnancy complication. These risk factors for GDM include:

• Being overweight or having obesity
• Having prediabetes
• Having a family history of diabetes
• Age — women older than 25 are more at risk for GDM

In addition to the above, if you’ve had a child who weighed more than nine pounds, this can increase your chances for GDM during subsequent pregnancies.

Navigating gestational diabetes during pregnancy

Now let’s dive into how we manage gestational diabetes, which often involves a multi-pronged approach that includes one or more of the following:

• Daily glucose monitoring
• Insulin injections
• Dietary changes that move you away from sugar, carbs, and fat
• More exercise

Between managing the diabetes side of the equation through medications and making some healthy lifestyle adjustments, there’s every chance that your pregnancy will go smoothly despite the GDM complication.

And you must make these lifestyle changes and stick to them, as half of women with GDM go on to develop type 2 diabetes after pregnancy. And this is a lifelong disease you’re better off without.

Rest assured, we’re with you every step of the way during your pregnancy, and we will monitor your health and your baby’s health closely.

If you have more questions about gestational diabetes or if you’d like to be tested for the condition, we invite you to contact our office in Mobile, Alabama, to schedule an appointment.