Introduction
If you've been diagnosed with gestational diabetes, you're likely wondering "What can I eat?"
The good news is - you don't have to give up all sugar! You can still have a bowl of ice cream or an orange as a snack. One thing you will have to give up, however, is juice. All juice. No exceptions.
What is Gestational Diabates?
Gestational diabetes is diabetes brought about by pregnancy. Only 7% of pregnant women ever develop the condition. It is more common in those women who are obese, have hypoglycemia, or a family history of Type II diabetes.
GD comes on at around the 27th week of pregnancy. This is because the placenta begins taking over hormone production at this point. One of the hormones it produces blocks cells from allowing glucose in as easily - counteracting the effectiveness of insulin.
Insulin is the "mediator" between sugar and cells. It opens up a path of communication between the two and convinces the cells to open up and let the glucose in. The cells then use the glucose as energy for MANY functions. The placenta's newly-produced hormone starts convincing the cells "not to" open up, and a battle begins. Your body produces more insulin, if it can - trying to bombard the cell and force it to open.
In some women who already have insulin-resistance, you've already been over-producing insulin, and your body can't make any more. Or - in normal women - sometimes your cells just continue to resist the insulin, no matter how much you can produce. These two scenarios result in gestational diabetes. Glucose backs up in the blood because it can't get into the cells, and what's in your blood goes into baby's blood. This overage of glucose (sugar) can cause problems for you and the baby.
Symptoms?
Some women experience symptoms, and others have no clue that they have GD until a routine 28-week Glucose-Tolerance-Test unveils it.
Some symptoms may include:
- excessive thirst
- excessive urination (we know you pee more when pregnant, but this is clearly too much.)
- excessive hunger (even more so than at other times in your pregnancy!)
- sweet cravings
- mood swings (yes, these are normal in pregnancy too, but you'll notice them getting worse when you thought they'd be getting better.)
- shakes or tremors between meals
- dizziness or faintness between meals
- extreme fatigue after or between meals
Blood Sugar Levels
Nutritionists recommend various plans to keep bloodsugar levels in check. The usual guidelines for diabetics are a little more strict when you're pregnant. The following bloodsugar levels are where you need to be during your pregnancy:
Fasting: 60-95 mg/dL
2 hours after start of a meal: 120 mg/dL or under
Normal diabetes numbers are not as strict, with the 2 hour reading being up to 140. But because your fetus is depending on a more level amount of glucose (so it has less of its own work to do,) the numbers are tighter.
Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates convert to sugar in your blood. Carbs range from fruits to vegetables, to grains and dairy products, and of course - man-made treats like candy and cookies. You may not even realize it, but every glass of milk you drink is considered a carbohydrate serving. Sure, it has protein in it, but it's primarily converted to sugar.
You may think that your carbohydrate restriction has to be severe to keep your blood glucose levels in check. But many healthy carbohydrates are allowed throughout the day. It's just a matter of how many you're having at each sitting - and whether they're the right ones.
Allowances
Some nutritionists may call them exchanges, but we'll call them allowances. You are allowed to have varying amounts of carbs during the day depending on 1. when you're eating them, and 2. how they're affecting your glucometer readings.
If you were hypoglycemic before pregnancy, you may have noticed that mornings were your "shaky" times, or "messed you up" for the rest of the day if you had too many. You'll want to keep carbs to their minimum until later in the day. If you were normal before pregnancy, it may not make much of a difference what part of the day you're having the most carbs, but you'll need to watch the glucometer closely to see if certain times affect you more than others.
Weight
You may notice that when you start making changes for your gestational diabetes, you lose a little weight. That's only natural since you're not bringing in as much sugar, and your body is processing it more efficiently. Your doctor will decide if your weight gain/loss is healthy and appropriate.
Eating Enough
You need to be sure that you are eating ENOUGH while pregnant. If you're not, your baby could develop birth defects as a result of excess ketones in your system. Ketones are the biproducts of burnt fat. Your body will begin to burn your fat as energy if it can't get energy from carbohydrates. So be sure that you get enough carbs at each meal, and enough food!
Medication
It's possible that just dietary modification won't be enough. Your doctor will decide based on your glucometer readings and further glucose-tolerance-tests whether it is necessary to start you on medication or insulin injections to keep your sugar levels under control.
Delivery Complications
If you don't get your gestational diabates under control, you and your baby face risks during and after labor.
Your baby could be born prematurely, overweight (still underdeveloped but large for its developmental stage,) and could suffer serious hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) attacks for a period after the delivery - needing to be poked and prodded every few hours to check glucose levels, and possibly needing an IV to keep levels in check. Your baby will also be at an increased risk of developing diabates later in life. Other complications can occur as well.
This is a SERIOUS condition and you should stay well-monitored and tell your doctor EVERYTHING you experience, as well as providing all of your glcuometer readings and a meal diary during visits.
Carbohydrate Intake Recommendations:
You'll be eating more often when you have gestational diabetes, because you need to ensure that you never get hypoglycemia attacks. The recommendation is to eat every 2 hours, and only have the following amounts of carbs during those meals/snacks:
Breakfast: 30g carbs
Snack: 30g carbs
Lunch: 45g carbs
Snack: 30g carbs
Dinner: 45g carbs
Snack: 30g carbs
If you find that your blood sugar levels are not decreasing with the above recommendations, you may need to go LOWER on the carbs, or analyze whether you're eating the right types of foods. Consult your physician and/or nutritionist on what numbers are best for you.
Of course, with all of these meals and snacks, you'll want to include protein! This helps even out (and slow down,) the processing of the carbs, as well as providing the protein your growing baby needs for various functions.
The following recipes may help. They have been divided up into specific "times" so you can get the maximum benefit from the carb/protein combinations. All carb counts are included. Counts are per serving.
The Recipes
** All complete meals can be mixed and matched - side dish and meal carb counts are provided separately. It's 2 recipes in one! And remember... all lower-carb meals allow you to have a dessert! **
Breakfast:
- New recipes coming soon
Snacks:
- New recipes coming soon
Lunch:
- New recipes coming soon
Dinner:
- Poached Tarragon Salmon with Creamy Lemon Broccoli (27-30g)
- Seasoned Grilled Chicken with Horseradish Mashed Potatoes (40g)
Desserts:
Nutrition Labels and Fiber
When a packaged food's nutrition label shows more than 5g of fiber per serving, you can subtract the fiber from the carbs. In regular low-carb eating, the entire number is deducted. But for diabetics, only items that have more than 5g carbs fiber can have fiber deducted, as the first 5g won't really make much difference. So - if you buy bread that has 18g carbs per slice, but has 7g fiber, you're really only using 11g of those carbs as glucose. But if you buy bread that has 21g carbs per slice and only 4g fiber, you are getting a full 21g carbs per serving. This can help when making decisions on what items to buy - as the more fiber the better for your entire body, and the slower the carbohydrates will be processed - leaving you less hungry and with less fluctuation in bloodsugar levels.
Note: DO NOT rely on products that claim to be "low carb" or give you a "net carb" amount, as they are not properly calculated due to the lack of FDA restrictions. As a diabetic, and especially a pregnant one, you cannot rely on these products to be truthful. Some diabetics also cannot deduct sugar alcohols from their carbohydrate content either, depending on their body's reaction to the alcohols. But it is HIGHLY recommended not to eat any of these "FrankenFoods" while pregnant anyway. Stick with the most natural, fresh foods you can get. It will be worth it for the health of your unborn child.
Disclaimer: This cookbook area has been written by a layman with gestational diabetes. This information is not provided as replacement for what your doctor prescribes. Always seek medical advice before trying anything stated on this site. Your doctor should be your ONLY source for medical information. What's provided here is simply a guide based on what has been recommended to the author by their doctor and/or nutritionist and since every person and their situation is different, it may not work for you. Ask your physician about these recommendations and if they apply to you. The author is not responsible for any adverse reactions or problems caused by use of this information.
- Monthly shipment