Can women with symptoms of gestational diabetes eat normally?
Sending your husband for a midnight ice cream, not being able to enjoy your favorite snack – food cravings and aversions are a peculiar reality of pregnancy. While many women have the luxury of indulging, a few of them have to be on a strict diet plan courtesy gestational diabetes.
The travails of pregnancy impose themselves upon the mother-to-be in the name of hormonal changes, morning sickness, nausea, vomiting and many others. But, with the support of the family and the fond hope of a child, mothers tend to bear them with a grace that’s unimaginable to men.
However, many women who have a family history of diabetes, have a higher BMI, or have an advanced maternal age, are prone to gestational diabetes.
Gestational Diabetes and its Treatment
Generally screened for between the 24th and the 28th week, the symptoms of gestational diabetes are often inconspicuous. A few women however experience frequent urination, increased thirst, blurry vision and fatigue.
Women diagnosed with gestational diabetes are advised to monitor blood sugar levels periodically, and take treatment in the form of diet and exercise management or medications.
And when it comes to dietary management, one should follow the advice of a qualified dietician. However, here are some diet hacks that can help you manage your gestational diabetes.
5 Diet Hacks to manage your Gestational Diabetes
The goal of diet management is to maintain normal blood glucose levels and ensure that there are no sharp fluctuations.
- Go for complex carbohydrates like whole grains, pasta, and potatoes and avoid foods with added sugars. However, intake of carbohydrates has to be regulated.
- Since it has been found that most women are insulin resistant in the mornings, it is better to reduce the intake of carbohydrates for the breakfast.
- Ideally, a woman with gestational diabetes should have a diet that includes three meals and three to four snacks daily.
- Prefer foods with low glycemic index. Low glycemic foods are those that release sugars slowly into the bloodstream. These include lentils, beans, sweetcorn, and porridge. Having a porridge for breakfast is ideal.
- Having variety in the food is vital. Eat foods with high dietary fiber, and low glycemic index. Cereals, salads, vegetables, fruits, and occasionally meat is the best way to go.
Since the ideal intake of carbohydrate, protein, and fat can be determined with the help of constant monitoring of the sugar levels, it is best left to the expert dietician to determine the exact proportions. Moreover, a dietician would prescribe a diet for you depending upon your age, weight, gestation period and other parameters. With an even distribution of the macro and the micronutrients, you can manage your gestational diabetes and give birth to a healthy baby!
