Dieting For Gestational Diabetes

Gestational diabetes is the onset of insulin resistance in pregnant women. If their pancreas is not equipped to overcome insulin resistance on its own, then the pregnant woman will need to take steps in her every day lifestyle to help improve her health. If she does not try to control the spike in glucose levels, then her baby may be born prematurely, as it could gain weight too quickly by not being able to resist insulin either.

The best way to control this is first and foremost, through a gestational diabetes diet. What you put into your body has a world of impact on the way your body functions. If you feed it foods high in glucose, like carbohydrates and sugars, then it may resist insulin which ultimately causes you problems. Minimize the carbs and the sugars. Don’t completely throw carbs out of your diet, as it is best for the baby to eat moderate amounts of foods from all food groups. Just try to keep your carb portion sizes consistent with the portion sizes of other foods you are eating.

The next thing you can do to try and reduce your high glucose is to drink water. This seems like the easiest thing to do, yet so many people truly have trouble getting in at least 8 cups a day. Exercise is a great recommendation for those who claim they are not thirsty enough for such excessive water intake, but if they get their blood flowing, then they won’t even notice how much water they are taking in, but it will sure be the recommended amount. Also, it is important that you drink water; not just any type of liquid to quench your thirst. Some flavored drinks are loaded with sugars and carbs which could unintentionally increase your glucose levels which will only remove you farther from your goal.

Dairy is also an important piece to help ensure that you are getting the recommended amount of calcium in your daily diet to help control your glucose levels. For a pregnant woman, four servings are recommended. These servings can come from foods such as milk, yogurt, green leafy vegetables, and any type of food that has been fortified with calcium. It doesn’t matter how it gets into your body, it only matters that it does.

Iron is another important source to control your health. If you are eating an adequate amount of iron, this will further take the place of excess carbs that you could be munching on instead. Iron is found in foods such as lean meats, fortified grains (rice, bread, certain types of pasta), poultry, fish, and eggs. There is also iron found in dark green leafy vegetables. It is recommended to eat at least three servings of foods rich in iron per day, especially in a gestational diabetes diet.

If you follow these tips, you will hopefully see a decrease in your glucose levels. By doing this, your body will no longer resist insulin, thus bringing everything back to its normal, working order in an effort to control gestational diabetes.