High Sugar Level during pregnancy

Just to ease your mind, Beatles19, the glucose test is pretty controversial still and isn't always a true indication of your glucose levels. Many countries don't ever administer the test at all. It is often inaccurate and unable to predict GD in the first place. Research suggests that something like 95% of mothers who are told that they have GD don't actually have it. Some doctors believe that "diagnosing and treating GDM is not only unnecessary but can cause more harm than good because labeling mother and baby with GDM can increase the risks of interventions, without clear evidence of benefit." (http://www.mothering.com/glucose-test) That harm and increase risk is something called the nocebo effect (more on that below). Here's an article that outlines the overdiagnosis controversy: http://journals.lww.com/obgynsurvey/Abstract/2003/11000/Gestational_Diabetes___A_Field_of_Controversy.24.aspx You don't have to take a glucose test at all if you don't want to. I have declined mine in pregnancy here in the UAE. I felt that I was healthy and since I'm a vegan and don't eat much sugar anyway if I were to take the test I would most likely test positive (or so said my nutritionist). So I didn't feel the need. But of course, it's a personal choice. Have you ever heard about the nocebo effect? It can happen when you have a lot of tests done and then are told that you are 'at risk'. The worry that this information causes (whether or not you are actually at risk) actually makes you sick. http://harvardmagazine.com/2005/05/the-nocebo-effect.html Super interesting stuff. A lot of doctors, researchers and midwives advocate for as little intervention (scans, tests and so on) during pregnancy to help the mother stay mentally positive and therefore keep her physical health as positive. I know in my first pregnancy we did everything medical. We got scans, took all the tests, visited doctor after doctor and in the end I was so worried about my health and my baby's health that I didn't trust my body at all. I didn't feel healthy and fit. It ended in a horrible and very traumatic 'emergency' section. This time around I have declined scans, I have declined the tests, I go to very few appointments - actually I've only been to one so far and am around 30 weeks - and instead I am trusting my body and my baby. I know that isn't for everyone but this time around I don't have the severe SPD that I had the first time around, I don't have the massive weight gain, I don't feel as tired, I'm not worried, I don't have edema and I don't feel sick. I feel strong and confident. I don't know. Just my two cents. I know that's not what your post was asking for so please ignore me if I've gone way too far off topic. :) If you have risk factors (history of GD for example, or were pretty overweight when you became pregnant) then you can get tested but what you are meant to do to manage GD is what you should do anyway in pregnancy. Eat healthy, exercise, monitor weight gain, etc. So to keep yourself healthy and your sugar levels down if you're worried about them, keep active and don't overeat, especially sweet and junk foods, and aim for even 15 to 30 minutes of light exercise three times a week, because this will benefit you and your baby and reduce the risk of GDM. Keeping your intake of sweet and starchy foods low, especially those with a high glycemic index is very important. (also from the Buckley article) But I'm curious why they administered the test so early? Usually if it is done it's not administered until the 24th week or so.

Hi there, I've had this problem during my pregnancy (did both 1hour and 2 hours glucose tests) and my doctor gave me the following targets for my glucose: 80 mg/dl after fasting 120-130 mg/dl after any meal (test after 1 hour) I had to check my glucose level 4 times a day and also consulted a dietician to help me take care of what i was eating. Basically, if you have this issue you need to give up on sweets, cut down carbs and drink lots and lots of water, and of course exercise. She also told me that when preparing a meal half the plate should be vegetables and the other half carbs and protein (1/4 of the plate each). I was also not allowed to have any fruit juice, not even the fresh made one, had to be very carefull with fruit in general.

Fasting Blood Glucose Glucose Level Indication From 70 to 99 mg/dL (3.9 to 5.5 mmol/L) Normal fasting glucose From 100 to 125 mg/dL (5.6 to 6.9 mmol/L) Impaired fasting glucose (pre-diabetes) 126 mg/dL (7.0 mmol/L) and above on more than one testing occasion Diabetes oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT) Levels applicable except during pregnancy. Sample drawn 2 hours after a 75-gram glucose drink. Glucose Level Indication Less than 140 mg/dL (7.8 mmol/L) Normal glucose tolerance From 140 to 200 mg/dL (7.8 to 11.1 mmol/L) Impaired glucose tolerance (pre-diabetes) Over 200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L) on more than one testing occasion Diabetes HTH

Baseline - the first blood sample The baseline sample they take before giving you the glucose should have between 60 milligrams of glucose per decaliter of blood and 110 mg/dL if you have no metabolic problems. Fasting samples that test between 110 mg/dL and 126 mg/dL are considered to be borderline and may indicate a pre-diabetic state. Fasting samples that are repeatedly above 126 mg/dL are considered to be indicative of diabetes. Middle - the second blood sample - often not taken The sample taken at one hour is considered by many to be not so important, but it should test as having less than 200 mg/dL glucose concentration to be healthy. The final blood sample - the two hour one The two hour blood sample is, of course, the most important when looking for diabetes. If you're completely healthy, the two hour sample should have a glucose concentration of less than 140 mg/dL. If the concentration is between 140 mg/dL and 200 mg/dL, you're considered to have impaired glucose tolerance, which is a pre-diabetic state, and if it's above 200 mg/dL then you probably suffer from full blown diabetes. This two hour oral test is considered pretty concrete evidence to diagnose or exclude all forms of diabetes at all but the very earliest stages of development.