Know the risks of Diabetes and Pregnancy!

Diabetes is one of the most life-threatening diseases around the world. It not only puts your blood sugar levels in constant danger but also opens the door to many other health complications. You can get diabetes at any point of time in life, there's no age restriction when it comes to it. But imagine being asked to deal with diabetes and pregnancy at the same time. Yes, a mother can get diabetes while she's pregnant. The condition is known as gestational diabetes in which your blood sugar levels become high during pregnancy. Here the types are similar to that of normal diabetes, A1 and A2. While A1 gestational diabetes can be managed through diet and exercise, A2 gestational diabetes is much severe and might need insulin dosage. Gestational diabetes is known to last until the time of pregnancy but there's also a risk that your new-born might get diabetes. Gestational diabetes symptoms are similar to signs and symptoms of diabetes, we've put together the most common ones below.

• Frequent urination
• Frequent thirst
• Frequent hunger

Gestational diabetes causes

Insulin is a hormone that breaks down sugar into glucose and then transports them to the respective cells. Your pancreas is the one responsible to produce this insulin. During pregnancy, constant hormonal changes force the glucose build-up in the bloodstream. If this occurs in a normal case, pancreas ensures an adequate amount of insulin is released to deal with the problem. But in pregnancy it fails to do so, resulting in gestational diabetes. 

So how do you identify you might have gestational diabetes? We've put down a few tests that your doctor might suggest to determine gestational diabetes. Mostly, gestational diabetes is present in the latter weeks of pregnancy. Your doctor might suggest when to do a test/check-up depending on your symptoms, usually, it's between weeks 24 and 28. A normal diabetes test is not recommended during pregnancy therefore, a glucose screening test is the most favorable option to determine gestational diabetes. During the test, you're asked to have a sweet drink to raise your blood sugar levels. Then, a normal blood test is done after an hour or so to see how your body manages the excess sugar. If your sugar levels are higher than 200 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL), an oral glucose tolerance test is suggested. The tolerance test help the doctors to check your blood sugar levels during meal intervals. If the results are the same as the earlier test, there's a high chance you may have gestational diabetes.

Gestational diabetes management

If you suspect any diabetic symptoms during pregnancy, consult your doctor or gynaecologist as soon as possible to ensure you and the baby are healthy before and after the delivery. Keeping a track of symptoms is of utmost importance, any slight changes should be reported immediately to the doctor. Your doctor might also suggest insulin dosage if the symptoms are much severe. Keep your blood sugar levels in check as any slight fluctuation might lead to other health complications for you and the child. The risk factors for gestational diabetes are as follows:

• Blood sugar before a meal should be less than 95 mg/dL
• Blood sugar an hour after a meal should be less than 140 mg/dL
• Blood sugar two hours after a meal should be less than 120 mg/dL

Diabetes and pregnancy are very common but it’s best to consult a doctor to work out a plan as soon as possible for all the necessary guidance.