Gestational Diabetes Information

How Gestational Diabetes Affects Mom and Baby

January 15, 2016 by Mathea Ford Leave a Comment

Getting diagnosed with gestational diabetes can be a scary time for most mothers. No matter how many times doctors or anyone else tells you that it is a condition that is easily monitored, you still have all sorts of scary thoughts running through your mind. You want to know how gestational diabetes is going to affect you, and most of all how it will affect your baby.

Now

Rest assured, you and your baby are probably just fine. Gestational diabetes truly is an easily monitored and treatable condition. As long as you follow your doctors’ orders, you will likely have a happy and healthy pregnancy.

You will be given some diet and lifestyle changes to follow. These are pretty straightforward healthy diet and lifestyle recommendations. Your dietary restrictions might be strict depending on the seriousness of your condition. You will be recommended to omit simple carbohydrates and sugars from your diet, and to make sure you get some exercise each day. [Read more…]

Foods to Avoid with Gestational Diabetes

January 8, 2016 by Mathea Ford 1 Comment

Most people, when asked to describe a gestational diabetes diet, would describe it as being restrictive and difficult. In fact, this is pretty far from the truth. A gestational diabetes diet, in most cases, is very similar to any healthy pregnancy diet. Any pregnant woman is going to be recommended to eat a similar diet with plenty of protein, fiber, and nutrients. This is all necessary to maintain the healthiest diet and lifestyle for your growing baby.

A gestational diabetes diet is going to have a few restrictions, of course. These are normally going to be foods that most pregnant women should avoid, however the consequences of indulging are certainly higher when you have gestational diabetes. To understand these consequences better, you need to understand the basics of gestational diabetes. [Read more…]

Best Foods for Gestational Diabetes

January 1, 2016 by Mathea Ford 1 Comment

Gestational diabetes is a condition that affects a very small percentage of pregnant women. Due to the rarity of the condition, it can sometimes be a little difficult to find reliable information about what you can and cannot do while treating your condition. For example, what foods are the best to eat with gestational diabetes?

What you eat has a huge impact on the outcome of your everyday life with gestational diabetes. Your blood glucose level is not just an arbitrary number; it is a value that determines your health and comfort. Eating right is the best way to treat gestational diabetes, and in fact is often the only necessary treatment.

What to Look For

The best foods for gestational diabetes will have a few things in common. These are the health factors you should look for when choosing the most healthful foods to eat.

Protein: Protein is an important dietary need for everyone, but especially for pregnant women. This goes double for pregnant women with gestational diabetes, as protein is needed to help balance blood sugar levels.

Fiber: Fiber is important for a gestational diabetes diet for two main reasons. The first is to help keep blood glucose levels stabilized. The other reason is that fiber can help keep you full longer, which can help sustain you between meals.

Nutrients: There are, of course, other nutritional factors to consider for a healthy gestational diabetes diet. Any healthy pregnancy needs lots of vitamins and minerals (such as iron), and even a healthy amount of healthy fats, natural sugars, and carbohydrates.

Calories: Calories provide your body with energy to burn throughout the day. Pregnancy does not mean you should go overboard, however. Pregnant women typically need to consume just 150 to 300 extra calories per day.

Great Gestational Diabetes Foods

Beans: Full of protein and fiber and good with almost every meal. There are many varieties of beans so this option rarely gets boring.

Avocado: Avocados are high in healthy fats and omega 3 fatty acids, not to mention tons of vitamins.

Yogurt: Yogurt is great for your digestion as well as a good source of calcium and vitamins. Be careful not to choose high sugar versions and stick to light or plain options. Add extras like berries, honey, granola, nuts, and more to unsweetened yogurt for a delicious and healthy snack or breakfast.

Bananas: Bananas are almost a perfect food. They are high in potassium as well as many other nutrients, and are a great source of natural sugar.

Greens: Dark, leafy greens are a great source of iron and antioxidants.

Broccoli: Full of calcium, fiber, and antioxidants. Not to mention delicious and filling.

Lean Meats: Great sources of protein come in the form of lean meats such as fish and poultry. Be careful about what kinds of fish you choose and stick to low mercury options.

Eggs: Eggs are another almost perfect food. They are an excellent source of protein and can be cooked multiple ways so almost everyone can find a recipe they enjoy.

Nuts: A handful of nuts is a great snack, full of vitamins, nutrients, healthy fats, and tons of protein.

A healthy gestational diabetes diet is easy when you know what to look for. Include plenty of protein, fiber, healthy fats, and nutrients into each meal and you will find that controlling your gestational diabetes is not as difficult as you might have thought. All of these foods are easy to find and easy to incorporate into any meal, so your job is as easy as chewing. For more information about gestational diabetes foods, click here.

8 Ways To Eat Your Way Out Of Gestational Diabetes

December 16, 2015 by Mathea Ford Leave a Comment

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.

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

December 12, 2015 by Mathea Ford Leave a Comment

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:

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

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

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.

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

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

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.

Stick To Low Carbohydrate Foods (nothing like the obvious)