Gestational diabetes is a type of diabetes that happens during pregnancy. Like other kinds of diabetes, gestational diabetes affects how the body processes glucose or sugar, causing glucose levels to be higher than they should be.

Jade Elliott sits down with Emily Hart Hayes, a Certified Nurse Midwife with Intermountain Healthcare, on this episode of the Baby Your Baby Podcast. Together they discuss how to prevent gestational diabetes and how to manage it.

How common is gestational diabetes?

According to the Centers for Disease Control, between 2 and 10 percent of pregnancies are affected by gestational diabetes.

Why does it happen during pregnancy?

Pregnancy hormones can make it harder for insulin to move glucose from your blood into other cells in your body.

Is there any new research about gestational diabetes? What causes it?

There is some new research on the different causes of gestational diabetes – one recent study looked at the cause being in the pancreas, where insulin is made, versus at the level of the cells in the body and how they’re able to use that insulin. Currently, people with diabetes are treated similarly, but in the future, we may have more information about how to best treat pregnant women based on where the source of the disease originates.

How can diet and exercise help you prevent or manage gestational diabetes?

We know gestational diabetes is caused by the body’s inability to process glucose normally. Maintaining a healthy weight, eating a balanced diet low in sugar, and getting regular exercise all help the body keep blood sugar under control. Exercise is especially important because it helps the body be more sensitive to insulin (the hormone that allows cells to use blood sugar for energy).

Is gestational diabetes routinely tested for during pregnancy? When and how?

Yes, most women will be tested for gestational diabetes. Typically, we test for this between 24- 28 weeks gestation (at the end of the 2nd trimester or beginning of the 3rd trimester). This usually involves drinking a sugary drink with a set amount of glucose in it, then measuring the blood glucose level an hour later to see how the body is able to process that sugar. For women who have risk factors, they may be tested early in pregnancy during the 1st trimester.

What happens if the screening test comes back positive? Does that mean you have gestational diabetes?

A longer, more comprehensive test is recommended to determine if you have gestational diabetes.

What are the warning signs for gestational diabetes?

Most people with gestational diabetes don’t have any symptoms, which is why it’s so important to test for this during routine pregnancy care.

What are the risk factors?

• Being overweight or obese
  
• Family history of type 2 diabetes
  
• Have previously given birth to a baby who weighed more than nine pounds
  
• Have had gestational diabetes in a previous pregnancy
  
• Women who are African American, Hispanic/Latino, American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, or Pacific Islander
  

If a pregnant woman doesn’t manage her gestational diabetes what can happen?

• Increased chance of preeclampsia, a condition that causes high blood pressure. If it becomes severe it can be life-threatening for mother and baby.
  
• Increased chance of needing a Caesarean delivery
  
• Higher risk of developing regular diabetes
  

If you have gestational diabetes are you more likely to develop regular diabetes later?

Women who have gestational diabetes have about a 50 percent chance of developing Type 2 diabetes later in life. That’s one reason why it’s important to follow up with your midwife or doctor after your baby is born to check for diabetes, and to get regular check-ups in the years after you’ve had your baby.

The good news is a healthy diet, regular exercise, and weight loss can help reduce the chances of developing diabetes later in life. Sometimes people are able to make lifestyle changes when they learn they have gestational diabetes during pregnancy which can help them stay healthy later in life.

What is the effect on the baby if you have gestational diabetes?

These babies are at increased risk of preterm delivery, and can experience low blood sugar after they are born.

Uncontrolled diabetes can even increase the chance of stillbirth, so it’s really important to know about it so we can manage it and prevent these things from happening.

Babies of women with gestational diabetes are at risk for being larger than normal, greater than nine pounds, which can make birth more difficult or increase the chances a Cesarean section is needed.

These babies have a higher chance of developing Type 2 diabetes themselves later in life.

Women considering pregnancy can help start the pregnancy out as healthy as possible by eating healthy and exercising to help reduce the chances of developing this disease and give their baby the best possible start in life. For women who have a body mass index in the obese or overweight category, they may reduce their risk of diabetes by losing weight prior to pregnancy.

If you have diabetes or gestational diabetes, it’s important to go to your prenatal visits so your provider can help you know how to best manage this condition and improve your and your baby’s outcome.

For more information on gestational diabetes, click here.

The Baby Your Baby program provides many resources for all pregnant women and new moms in Utah. There is also expert advice from the Utah Department of Health and Intermountain Healthcare that air each week on KUTV 2News.