Gestational diabetes is a type of diabetes that occurs when a woman is pregnant. About four percent of all pregnant women suffer from gestational diabetes. The disease is caused when the body is unable to process insulin, causing high levels of sugar in the blood, very similar to type 2 diabetes. It usually occurs during the second quarter, and often disappears after birth. Left untreated, gestational diabetes can cause damage to the fetus and mother.
What triggers gestational diabetes? Gestational diabetes begins when the female body is not able to make and use all the insulin requirements during pregnancy due to hormonal changes caused by pregnancy. During pregnancy, hormones from the placenta help the baby grow and develop. However, these hormones make it more difficult for a woman’s body to use insulin, the development of insulin resistance. In most cases this is not a problem: the need for insulin rises, the pancreas increases its production. But when a pregnant woman from the pancreas is not sufficient for the demand for insulin and blood sugar too high, the result is gestational diabetes.
Who is at risk for gestational diabetes? May a woman at risk for gestational diabetes if:
* More than 25 years
* Are overweight
* A family history of type 2 diabetes
* Known gestational diabetes during a previous pregnancy,
* In a previous pregnancy or the inexplicable death of a child with a birth weight more than nine pounds, or
* East African, Hispanic or Native American.
Pregnant women who have gestational diabetes may experience thirst, fatigue, excessive urine and other symptoms similar to those of diabetes mellitus. Unfortunately, these symptoms are normal for the entire pregnancy. As in prediabetes, gestational diabetes is often asymptomatic. Women’s blood sugar should be tested regularly for prenatal care and medical equipment at home, especially if considered at risk.
Babies are affected by gestational diabetes, high levels of glucose in the circulating blood to the fetus can cause unusually large, fat baby. This is a condition known as macrosomia. Additional blood glucose through the placenta, giving the baby high blood sugar. The baby’s pancreas, in turn, insulin has to do to get rid of blood glucose. Since the baby is getting more energy from the mother’s higher level of glucose needed to grow and develop, this excess energy is stored as fat. Babies with macrosomia face health problems of their own, including damage to the birth of the shoulders (shoulder dystocia), because they are too large to fit through the birth canal through. Because of the extra insulin made by the baby’s pancreas, newborns may develop very low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) at birth and are also at greater risk of breathing problems and jaundice. These children also have an increased risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes in adults. Gestational diabetes usually is not associated with birth defects.
How gestational diabetes affects the mother-to-be? In addition to suffering the symptoms of diabetes, women may need a caesarean section will be made only if the baby is macrosomic. Pregnant women are also at increased risk of preeclampsia, a serious condition characterized by a significant increase in blood pressure. Women with gestational diabetes are at greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes and hypertension later in life.
Accurate diagnosis of testing pregnant women at risk of developing gestational diabetes should be tested between weeks 24 and 28, earlier if risk factors, especially if the condition is present during the previous pregnancy.
If you are diagnosed, treatment includes meal plans and regular physical activity, which helps reduce levels of glucose in the blood. Tests may also include daily blood glucose and, if necessary, insulin injections. Work with your doctor, nurse practitioner and other members of your health care team for their treatment of gestational diabetes can be adjusted as necessary. After the prescribed treatment for gestational diabetes will ensure a smooth pregnancy and childbirth, and a healthy baby.
While gestational diabetes usually goes away after several weeks, it is important to remember that you have a higher risk of gestational diabetes with your next pregnancy and a greater chance of becoming diabetic later in life.
Good luck for your life!
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