
The Blue KC Care Management app makes it easy to get your pregnancy questions answered. Download it now and use the access code kclinkbegin to connect.
This type of diabetes is first diagnosed during pregnancy. Here are the key facts expecting moms should know about symptoms and treatment.
Now that you’re expecting, you’ll go to many prenatal visits. One thing your ob-gyn will screen you for is gestational diabetes. That’s a type of diabetes that develops or is diagnosed for the first time during pregnancy. Just like with other types of diabetes, it means that too much sugar stays in your blood.
About 6% of pregnant women in the United States develop gestational diabetes, according to the March of Dimes. And if it’s not treated, it can cause problems for you and your baby.
If you do receive a gestational diabetes diagnosis, you should know that there are a lot of effective ways to get it under control. Managing your blood sugar levels is key. Your doctor will develop a plan to help you have a healthy pregnancy.
Ready to learn more about the causes, symptoms, and treatments of gestational diabetes? Read on for answers to common questions.
Gestational diabetes develops when your body can’t make enough insulin during pregnancy. Insulin is a hormone your pancreas makes that lets blood glucose (sugar) into your cells. Your cells use glucose as energy.
During pregnancy, higher levels of pregnancy hormones can interfere with insulin, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). That can cause your blood sugar levels to rise — and affect your health and your baby’s health.
The Blue KC Care Management app makes it easy to get your pregnancy questions answered. Download it now and use the access code kclinkbegin to connect.
Gestational diabetes usually has no symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). That’s why getting screened by your doctor is so important.
You’ll be given a glucose screening test between 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy. You’ll drink a sweet liquid that contains glucose, then get your blood drawn. If that screening test shows you may have diabetes, you’ll get a second test to confirm the diagnosis.
However, if you are at higher risk of developing gestational diabetes, your doctor may test you earlier (by 12 weeks), says ob-gyn Maureen Whelihan, M.D.
Anyone can develop gestational diabetes. But certain risk factors increase your chances, according to ACOG. They include:
If it's not treated, gestational diabetes can cause complications for both mother and baby. Some possible problems include:
If you get diagnosed with gestational diabetes, there’s a lot you can do to manage it. The goal of treatment is to keep blood sugar levels under control. Ideally that means getting them to the same level as a pregnant woman without gestational diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association. Your doctor will recommend these lifestyle changes:
If those steps aren’t enough, you might need medication to manage your blood sugar. Your doctor may prescribe insulin, metformin, or another medication.
Additional sources:
Gestational diabetes statistic: March of Dimes
Gestational diabetes basics, risk factors: American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
Symptoms, complications: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Preterm birth: March of Dimes
Chance of diabetes post-pregnancy: National Institutes of Health
Treatment goals: American Diabetes Association
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.