All pregnant women typically have higher than normal levels of blood sugar due to the hormonal changes during pregnancy; however gestational diabetes during pregnancy occurs in the case of 3 to 10% of pregnancies when the woman is not able to secrete the excess insulin required.
Babies born to mothers who have gestational diabetes may be very large for their gestational age (which increases chances of a C section or risk of trauma in case of vaginal delivery), or may be risk of developing jaundice or low blood sugar.
Though with proper care, it is possible for pregnant women with gestational diabetes to deliver a perfectly healthy baby. However, it is a good idea to try and avoid this condition. The following tips help you to avoid diabetes during pregnancy-
If a woman has a family history of diabetes, she is more at risk of developing gestational diabetes. If she has previously had a very large baby or has previous had a still born baby, she is more at risk.
Overweight women are also more likely to develop the condition, as are women belonging to certain ethnic groups; viz, Asian, Hispanic, Black or Native American. Women with high blood pressure or women over the age of 35 are also seen to be more at risk.
Having said this, in many cases, women have gestational diabetes during pregnancy even if they don’t have any of the other risk factors. Pregnancy Screening is the key to detecting the condition since it is largely asymptomatic – unless a woman is tested for it, it is unlikely to come to light.
So when a woman exhibits the above risk factors she is tested early on in pregnancy (typically testing for gestational diabetes is done at about 28 weeks gestation) to try and control the situation and avoid complications.
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