Gestational Diabetes Information

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8 Ways To Eat Your Way Out Of Gestational Diabetes 

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It is important to eat right when you are pregnant and more so when you have been diagnosed with gestational diabetes. In fact, about 90% of cases reported world-wide can be completely and effectively controlled with diet alone.  I managed my first pregnancy with just diet for a while, then had to start metformin.  But you always continue to eat a diabetic diet until the baby is born.  Regardless of medication.

But which foods should you eat? What portions are ideal? Which meal plan is right to follow?

Discover what foods to eat with gestational diabetes together with some of the best dieting practices that you may need to adopt in order to make it through your pregnancy with this condition.

  1. Stick To Low Carbohydrate Foods (nothing like the obvious)

Carbohydrates are the main source of glucose for your blood and are very important for you and your baby. They are a major source of energy meaning they comprise quite a large portion of your daily caloric intake; they can therefore raise your sugar levels very easily.

To keep your blood sugar under control, you will need to spread out your carbohydrate-intake throughout the day. You can spread the carbohydrates you consume by eating 3 small to medium sized meals and 2-3 snacks per day.

Some of the healthy carbohydrate foods that you can eat include:

  • Whole Wheat Bagel
  • Oatmeal with fruit or sugar free jam
  • Whole Grain Pasta
  • Whole Wheat Pancakes – just use sugar free preserves or other toppings instead of syrup
  • Brown or Wild Rice (easy to add some meat to and have a yummy meal!)
  • Whole-grain bread
  • Raw or cooked vegetables

       2.   Go Slow on Fat

Along with carbohydrate intake, the diet should be supplemented with healthy fats that are good for you and the baby. Eat small amounts of unsaturated fats to keep your immune system healthy and limit the amount of saturated fats you consume. What’s the difference, you ask?  Unsaturated fats are things like olive oil and avocados that are great for you and keep you feeling good.  You should be sure to include lots of them in your daily meals.  Saturated fats tend to be in animal products and are solid at room temperature.  So the butter, crisco, and fat on meats is all saturated and should be limited in your daily meals.

In addition, to ensure you consume low fat foods, trim fat from meats before cooking, limit butter use and try grilling foods instead of frying your meal.

Note: While fats don’t affect your blood sugar levels directly, if you eat them in large amounts they can cause extra weight gain which can make it a lot more difficult to control blood glucose levels.

Good examples of healthy unsaturated fats include:

  • Seeds
  • Avocados
  • Nuts
  • Olive oil
  • Flax seed and grape seed
  • Canola oil
  • Sunflower oil

     3.  Up Your Fiber Intake

Make high fiber food a part of your daily diet whether you have gestational diabetes or not. The more fiber a food contains, the longer it will help you to feel full and not like you need to eat more. High fiber foods also help to keep blood sugar levels from going too high after meals by slowing down the digestion of carbohydrates. What’s more, fiber helps in maintaining regular bowel movements.

High-fiber foods to consume are:

  • Bran cereals
  • Fresh fruits
  • Dried peas and beans
  • Fresh vegetables
  • Whole grain breads

    4.  You Need More Protein

You need about an extra 10 – 15 gm of protein per day for as an extra amount of proteins is required for the proper development of the fetus, or about 1 – 2 ounces. Proper protein intake will involve consuming two to three of the following items: two tablespoons of nut butter, an egg, an ounce of nuts, 3 oz. of cooked meat or a 1/2 cup of beans. Although foods rich in protein don’t directly affect one’s blood sugar levels, they are very important for the growth and maintenance of the body.

Protein foods include:

  • Eggs
  • Skinless chicken
  • Reduced fat cheese
  • Lean meat
  • Fish
  • Pork
  • Beans

     5.  Avoid These High Glycemic Index Foods

Choose foods with a low glycemic index (GI), as they take longer to be digested hence glucose is released more slowly into your blood stream – this does not mean you get less glucose only that your body has more time to process it. This helps you to manage your gestational diabetes. Low GI foods also help in weight management and in preventing large fluctuations in blood glucose levels. On the other hand, high GI foods should be avoided during pregnancy as they tend to be absorbed quickly into the bloodstream causing your blood sugar levels to rise quickly and make it difficult for them to come down.

Some examples of Low GI foods are:

  • 100% stone-ground whole wheat or pumpernickel bread
  • Oatmeal (rolled or steel-cut), oat bran, muesli
  • Pasta, converted rice, barley, Bulgar
  • Sweet potato, corn, yam, Lima/butter beans, peas, legumes and lentils
  • Most fruits, non-starchy vegetables and carrots

     6.  Increase your intake of Calcium and Iron

During pregnancy calcium and iron requirements are usually increased. To get adequate nourishment, you should include foods rich in calcium such as milk, yogurt, nuts and other calcium fortified foods. Also include three servings of foods rich in iron each day such as vegetables, chicken, red meat and fish.

     7.   Veggies and Fruits are Your Best Friends

Fruits and vegetables contain essential nutrients for you and the baby so eating a wide variety of fruits and veggies is recommended. One to three servings of fruits are recommended for daily intake but you should eat only one serving at a time. For vegetables, eat three to five servings daily especially yellow or dark green vegetables. A single serving of vegetables is equal to either a half cup of chopped veggies, a cup of leafy veggies or 3/4 cup of vegetable juice.

     8.  Water, Water, Water

Ensure you also drink eight glasses of water every day to maintain a proper fluid balance in the body. Water is essential as it contains no sugar content that could spike your blood glucose levels like some drinks.  It also helps you to maintain regular bowel movements and flush out your toxins from your blood.

 

Bottom Line

Research suggests that gestational diabetes may increase a child’s risk of obesity and type-2 diabetes later in life. That being said, it is important to make healthy food choices and remain physically active. A little extra attention to your diet plan can go a long way in ensuring a better future for you and your entire family.

Now that you know what foods to eat with gestational diabetes, it is high time you kick the worries goodbye and grab what is best for your baby.

Some Helpful Gestational Diabetes Recipes Ideas

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Gestational diabetes is the form of diabetes that happens during pregnancy. This type of diabetes can be easily tackled by taking a healthy and balanced diet for a long period of time. The diet helps in slowing the growth of the diabetes and prevents it from turning more complicated during the whole term of pregnancy. This is obviously recommended that the patient or the pregnant lady should consult a doctor before starting any such diet to determine the best diet plan for her and then follow it as required.

In this article, I want to discuss the gestational diabetes recipes that you must follow and why they make a difference for your meal planning.

Gestational Diabetes and Food Habits:

For any balanced diet, you should eat food from a variety of sources, never stick to one particular kind of food as it may hamper your total nutrition intake. In case of gestational diabetes you need to consume a variety of food, mainly:

  • A great deal of fruits and vegetables as they contain a healthy amount of fiber and vitamins
  • A balanced amount of healthy fats and lean proteins but don’t take a lot of saturated fat and oils
  • Don’t consume too much amount of food which contains a lot of sugar, such as fruit juices, pastries, soft drinks etc.
  • Balanced amount of whole grain foods, such as cereal, bread, rice etc.  Remember whole grains have extra fiber so you are able to absorb them more slowly
  • Take a reasonable amount of starchy vegetables like peas and corn. Try to cook them without extra butter or margarine.
  • Try to avoid butter most of the time, and substitute it with vegetable or olive oil. This can be a great substitute for your need of butter and would not hamper the taste of the food that much
  • Substitute your white rice with brown rice as this helps you keep the blood sugar at a balanced level by absorbing the food more slowly
  • Include non fat yogurt in your gestational diabetes recipes if you can to get extra protein
  • Don’t eat a great deal of regular potatoes. Try to take sweet potatoes instead as sweet potatoes have a great amount of fiber and nutrients (like beta carotene) and releases the glucose in a balanced manner in the blood and helps you manage the blood sugar level with more control for the most part unless you add a lot of sugar to it when eating.
  • Try to eat whole wheat and natural grains bread instead of white bread.

Some Basic Do’s and Don’ts:

Do’s:

  • Do take smaller amounts of foods every two to three hours. this will help you in maintaining the appetite and keep you fresh and energetic
  • Drink water and drink a lot of it. It is advisable that you take about 64 ounces of water each and every day
  • Eat foods like beans, kidney beans, tofu and other excellent sources of vegetable protein as high amount of protein should help you with blood sugar control in a gestational diabetes recipe
  • Always eat a lot of vegetables. Include multi colored and green vegetables in your gestational diabetes recipes. Spinach, carrot, cauliflower, okra and other such vegetables are ideal for you as they do not raise your blood sugar very much.
  • Eating fruits is also helpful. As fruits are natural sources of fiber and vitamins, but remember to limit them for breakfast so that you don’t have to deal with high blood sugar all day
  • Consume nuts such as peanuts, walnuts, almonds etc. But make sure that you don’t take them in a large quantity but more like 10-12 at a time during a snack

Don’ts:

  • Avoid any kind of sweets and sugar in your diet. Don’t eat sweets, donuts, candy bars or other cookies in your day
  • Don’t take too much food in your breakfast and other meals like dinner, instead work to divide them up into smaller amounts
  • Noodles and white rice should be used in moderation in your gestational diabetes recipes
  • Try to avoid saturated fats, butter and cream to reduce your saturated fat intake
  • Avoid caffeine as much as possible. Avoid soda and tea as well as coffee since they all can contain caffeine
  • Limit your intake of processed food and be careful that you try to cook more from scratch instead of using boxed and processed foods to have more control over your meals

Some useful Gestational Diabetes Recipes:

  1. Vegetables:

If you are ready to take on a food plan based primarily on vegetables, then these items are ideal for you. Eat 3 to 5 servings a day. Each serving should be made of:

  • One cup of green and leafy vegetables
  • Cooked and chopped raw vegetables of the same quantity
  • Vegetable juice
  • Chopped raw leafy vegetables
  • Frozen or fresh vegetables without oil, salt or fats
  1. Breakfast:

The breakfast meal for gestational diabetes recipes should be eaten every morning, so try not to skip. Don’t be remiss in consuming breakfast and get up and make your breakfast each day. The recipe for the perfect breakfast to help you have a great day with gestational diabetes includes:

  • Half cup of water cooked oats
  • A full and big glass of water
  • 5-6 raw almond pieces
  • A little sweetener – your choice – to add to the oatmeal
  • A quarter cup of non fat fresh milk
  1. Lunch:

For lunch, the meals are a little bit on the heavier side. The basic lunch recipe should include:

  • A cup full of cracked wheat or steamed brown rice
  • A cup of soup without too much pepper or salt in it but make sure you have some meat like chicken or beef
  • Some stirred or steam cooked vegetables
  • A lot of water
  • You can also add an apple in the lunch if you feel that the food is not fulfilling you.
  1. Fruits:

Fruits are an essential part of the daily diet of gestational diabetes patients. They should take fruits in a reasonable and fulfilling quantity.

  • A whole fruit, preferably a banana or an apple
  • Try to take whole fruits as they contain more fiber
  • Half cup of chopped canned fruit
  1. Protein:

Protein should always be in your daily diet in a controlled amount. The basic protein amounts are:

  • 1 egg, preferably half boiled
  • Some peanut butter (2 Tablespoons)
  • Cooked beans to provide you with vegetable protein (1/2 cup)
  • A cup of cooked or baked meat or fish (3-4 ounces)
  • Lean pieces of beef or pork
  1. Dinner:

Dinner should also be light enough and should not contain a great deal of heavy ingredients. The ideal dinner includes:

  • A cup of steam cooked vegetables
  • A cup full of steamed brown rice (or noodles or potatoes)
  • Meat / protein in about 4 ounces
  • A glass of water

Remember you can follow these gestational diabetes meal plans and recipes to ensure a healthier outcome in pregnancy.  This will help you manage the effects of gestational diabetes and have a better and easier pregnancy. Be strict and self controlled and you will have no worries regarding the increasing blood sugar level in your body.  You can manage with lots of vegetables and fruit, a reasonable amount of carbohydrate (like rice or noodles), and meat or protein sources.

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Pumpkin Fluff Recipe Low Calorie Gestational Diabetes Dessert for Holiday Meals

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Thanksgiving and other holiday parties give us a chance to eat a little more than we should at times.  Here’s a great pumpkin fluff recipe that ends up being just 1 carbohydrate choice for 1/2 cup and would make a great dessert at a meal.  The main part of the prep time is 2 hours for chilling the pudding.

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