Obsessing about food changes and low mood

[Mel-Layden]

I’m 29 week pregnant with my first child and I’ve just been diagnosed with GD.

I find I’m obsessing about what I can and cannot eat. I’ve made changes, some of them work and some of them haven’t.

I’ve swapped white bread for brown seeded bagels and fruit but this is making my bloods sugar high as well as fruit and porridge making me high too.

I’m completely out of my depth and have no one in my family who has ever had GD or diabetes of any form.

This is making me feel low in mood. I’ve put on 2 stone through out my pregnancy and feel like I’ve put my own health and the health of my baby at risk because of this.

Just wondering if anyone had any suggestions of good breakfast and lunch foods? Am I alone feeling this way or have others felt this way too?

Sorry for the long one

 

[Alexandra100]

This is making me feel low in mood.

Hello Mel, I don't know anything about gestational diabetes, but I'd like to welcome you to the Forum. Things tend to be a bit quiet around here at the weekends. (I suspect some of us prefer to post during work time!) but I'm sure some more members will be along soon to help and encourage you. It is absolutely normal to feel cast down by all this. Diabetes Distress is very real. I certainly suffer from it. Diabetes intrudes on our lives every time we eat, so at a minimum three times a day. Comfort eating is off the menu.

What seems to help most to lower bg levels is not conventional clean or healthy eating but reducing the amount of carbs we eat. Some of us can get away with eating more carbs than others. However, as I already said, I know nothing about GD. I read that breast-feeding women should not eat very low carb - not lower than 50g daily. I imagine this would also apply to pregnant women but please check this out with your medical team. They might want you to eat a lot more carbs than that. I have seen 175g carbs daily quoted. Do you know how many g carbs you are eating? There is an article on low carb for GD here: https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/gestational-diabetes-pregnancy

Bread, porridge and fruit are major culprits in raising bg for most people. I eat free range chicken legs for breakfast, microwaved frozen salmon with a fried egg and low carb vegetables for lunch. Lots of us like eggs and more eggs for breakfast. Avocados are very popular. You can find lots of clear info. and ideas on Diet Doctor
https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb

There must be a middle way to eat so as to lower your bg without sacrificing the nutrients you need for yourself and your baby. I do hope you find it soon.

 

[DCUKMod]

I’m 29 week pregnant with my first child and I’ve just been diagnosed with GD.

I find I’m obsessing about what I can and cannot eat. I’ve made changes, some of them work and some of them haven’t.

I’ve swapped white bread for brown seeded bagels and fruit but this is making my bloods sugar high as well as fruit and porridge making me high too.

I’m completely out of my depth and have no one in my family who has ever had GD or diabetes of any form.

This is making me feel low in mood. I’ve put on 2 stone through out my pregnancy and feel like I’ve put my own health and the health of my baby at risk because of this.

Just wondering if anyone had any suggestions of good breakfast and lunch foods? Am I alone feeling this way or have others felt this way too?

Sorry for the long one

Hi Mel - Is it fair to assume that having been diagnosed with GD, you're likely to be seeing your medical team a bit more regularly?

I don't know what specific advice you were given when you were diagnosed? Sounds like you were given a blood glucose meter, so that you can track what's happening to your blood sugars.

To be clear, my knowledge of gestational diabetes is limited, but I think in your shoes, I'd try to keep things really simple, if I could.

You've identified that bread and porridge elevate your bloods, but you don't say what they rise to and when? That would probably be helpful to know.

Depending on what those blood glucose numbers say, I'd be tempted to pare back on the carbs, a bit. If you start by reducing the amounts of bread, porridge and the like you're having, then keep an eye on the numbers.

As you likely know, it is important those numbers get to a decent place to help you and your baby through your pregnancy. Some women have to go on to take some insulin during their pregnancies.

Whatever you do, please keep an open mind about medications. Whatever you don, don't go starving yourself to try to keep the numbers down. You both need nourishment.

Hopefully someone with more knowledge will be along soon.

Good luck with the balance of your pregnancy and I hope you can still enjoy it all.

 

[Resurgam]

I’ve swapped white bread for brown seeded bagels and fruit but this is making my bloods sugar high as well as fruit and porridge making me high too.This is making me feel low in mood. I’ve put on 2 stone through out my pregnancy and feel like I’ve put my own health and the health of my baby at risk because of this.
Just wondering if anyone had any suggestions of good breakfast and lunch foods? Am I alone feeling this way or have others felt this way too?

Eating that stuff is going to make you depressed - it did me and I had the same advice for decades - carbs are sooo good for you - yeah, right.
I sailed through my first pregnancy eating low carb foods, but not restricting them - lots of salads and veges, no bread - grains have little nutritional value, avoid potatoes and sugary foods, but meat, fish, seafood, eggs and cheese are all good, with the protein and fat needed for growing body and brain - by salad I don't mean a bit of lettuce - I get a large bowl and have walnuts coleslaw celery tomato beetroot radish cucumber red sweet pepper, and a bag of prepared salad on top, then either add eggs and cheese or tuna or have a side dish with meat or fish.
I make stir fries with low carb foods, courgette, bean sprouts, mushrooms, aubergine, green sweet pepper, even such things as the outer stalks of celery. Other things such as cauliflower and broccoli, celeriac, turnip or swede - small servings of peas or beans in pods, are all low carb. Small servings of frozen berries, with cream and sugar free jelly make a nice dessert.
These are all high in micronutrients, all different colours, which is considered good, and you'll not gain weight eating the natural fats - olive oil and vinegar dressing on the salads and stir fries, butter on veges - protein and fat are essential nutrients.
I was not diagnosed at the time, but I have always had trouble with carbohydrate right from my twenties, and I had my children when I was in my early 30s. The first, I ate low carb foods all the time - it was already my established and preferred way of eating. The baby was over 9lb born, very strong, grew like a weed, achieved all the milestones in advance of his age and is now well over 6ft tall, still slender and energetic, and they are expecting their 5th child. He's a good advert for Dr Atkins.

 

[Indy51]

You might want to check out the website of Lily Nichols who has made an extensive study in this area:

https://lilynicholsrdn.com/

 

[Binks85]

Hi Mel. I've been trying it on ever which way I can to cheat the glucose meter. I can tell you that seeded brown toast and eggs or All bran flakes in the morning seem to be okay.

New potatoes over any other potatoes are better for you as well. Lots of chicken & Mediterranean vegetable bakes in my house. And treats are always either sugar free jelly or a fruit.

Goodluck! You're not alone! B

 

[dvn]

Try to incorporate good quality carbs in every meal. By the end of my pregnancy I could only tolerate bulgur with almond milk for breakfast, whole wheat pasta with cottage cheese and bacon for lunch and whole wheat bread with ham or eggs for dinner.

I was told by my doctor that it is absolutely essential to eat carbs with every meal, so I was on 160CH diet (30-20-50-20-30-10). Your baby needs those carbs, so try to eat them in moderation! I don’t live in the UK, so the protocol might differ from yours though.

Enjoy your pregnancy!

 

[Resurgam]

I think that the baby the OP was growing will be walking by now - but I would point out that wheat, pasta and bread are not essential foods - I avoided them completely in my first pregnancy and the baby was 9lb 3 oz and is well over 6ft tall with five children of his own now. I wish I'd been able to do the same for my second pregnancy.