Living with Gestational Diabetes

Follow your care provider's recommendations.

Eat the diet recommended by your care provider or a nutritionist. This diet usually includes a 2,200 to 2,400 calorie diet.

The diet is specifically divided up into 45 percent carbohydrates (breads, cereals, fruits, etc.), 25 percent proteins (meat, cheese, milk), and 30 percent fat. Some dietitians will further break down your fruits and milks into specific categories. You will be taught the best way to recognize these food sources and the quantity or number of servings from each food group.

You can keep track of your servings on a daily log. You may need to routinely check your blood sugar levels or your care provider may check them when you come in for your prenatal exams. In most areas, home blood glucose monitors are available for loan to women with gestational diabetes. Talk to your care provider about this option.

Test your blood sugar level according to the method prescribed by your care provider. You will learn to prick your finger, obtain, and test your blood. Your care provider will adjust your diet or insulin to maintain blood sugars in the following parameters:

• Fasting blood sugar (FBS): less than 100
• Blood sugar 2 hours after eating a meal: less than 120

Keep an accurate record of your sugars. Bring this record to each office visit. You may also be taught to test your urine for ketones and/or glucose. Keeping track of your baby's movement from twenty-eight weeks until delivery is always important. Call your care provider if your baby is not moving as much as usual. If you are on insulin, your care provider will start you on twice weekly testing of your baby's well-being.

The test most frequently used is a nonstress test (NST). A fetal heart monitor watches for the baby's heart rate and any contractions, and your perception of your baby's movement is tracked by pressing a button. This information is documented electronically on a strip of paper and evaluated. Another test that may be done is a biophysical profile. This is a thirty-minute test done by ultrasound. The baby is watched for movement, muscle tone or flexion, breathing movements, the amount of amniotic fluid, and the condition of the placenta, along with a possible NST.