Gestational Diabetes-Home Treatment
Gestational Diabetes-Home Treatment
You are the most important person in determining whether you will have a healthy pregnancy. Gestational diabetes, like any form of diabetes, cannot be successfully treated with medicines alone.
Your doctor, diabetes educator, registered dietitian, and other health professionals can help you learn how to care for yourself and protect your baby from problems. If you learn as much as you can about gestational diabetes, you will have the knowledge you need to have a healthy pregnancy. As you understand how food and exercise affect your blood sugar, you can better control your blood sugar level and help prevent problems from gestational diabetes.
Home treatment for gestational diabetes includes changing the way you eat, exercising regularly, and checking your blood sugar.
Changing what, when, and how much you eat can help keep your blood sugar level in a target range. After you are diagnosed with gestational diabetes, you may meet with a registered dietitian to decide on an individualized healthy eating plan. Your dietitian may ask you to write down everything you eat and to keep track of your weight. He or she will also teach you how to count carbohydrate in order to spread carbohydrate throughout the day.
Regular, moderate exercise during pregnancy helps your body use insulin better, which helps control your blood sugar level. Often, exercising and eating well can treat gestational diabetes. Try to do at least 2½ hours a week of moderate exercise.3, 4 One way to do this is to be active 30 minutes a day, at least 5 days a week. It's fine to be active in blocks of 10 minutes or more throughout your day and week.
If you have never exercised regularly or were not exercising before you became pregnant, talk with your doctor before you start exercising. Exercise that does not place too much stress on your lower body-such as using an arm ergometer, a machine that just works your arm muscles; or riding a recumbent bicycle, a type of bike with a seat that looks like a chair-are especially good for pregnant women. You may also want to try special exercise classes for pregnant women or other low-impact activities such as swimming or walking.
If exercise and changing the way you eat keep your blood sugar within a target range, you will not need to take diabetes medicine. If you need to take insulin, make sure you have a quick-sugar food, such as 3 or 4 glucose tablets or 3 pieces of hard candy, with you when you exercise in case you have symptoms of low blood sugar. Symptoms of low blood sugar include sweating, blurred vision, and confusion. If you think that your blood sugar is low, stop exercising, check your blood sugar level, and eat the snack.
Your doctor, diabetes educator, registered dietitian, and other health professionals can help you learn how to care for yourself and protect your baby from problems. If you learn as much as you can about gestational diabetes, you will have the knowledge you need to have a healthy pregnancy. As you understand how food and exercise affect your blood sugar, you can better control your blood sugar level and help prevent problems from gestational diabetes.
Home treatment for gestational diabetes includes changing the way you eat, exercising regularly, and checking your blood sugar.
Eating healthy foods
Changing what, when, and how much you eat can help keep your blood sugar level in a target range. After you are diagnosed with gestational diabetes, you may meet with a registered dietitian to decide on an individualized healthy eating plan. Your dietitian may ask you to write down everything you eat and to keep track of your weight. He or she will also teach you how to count carbohydrate in order to spread carbohydrate throughout the day.
Getting regular exercise
Regular, moderate exercise during pregnancy helps your body use insulin better, which helps control your blood sugar level. Often, exercising and eating well can treat gestational diabetes. Try to do at least 2½ hours a week of moderate exercise.3, 4 One way to do this is to be active 30 minutes a day, at least 5 days a week. It's fine to be active in blocks of 10 minutes or more throughout your day and week.
If you have never exercised regularly or were not exercising before you became pregnant, talk with your doctor before you start exercising. Exercise that does not place too much stress on your lower body-such as using an arm ergometer, a machine that just works your arm muscles; or riding a recumbent bicycle, a type of bike with a seat that looks like a chair-are especially good for pregnant women. You may also want to try special exercise classes for pregnant women or other low-impact activities such as swimming or walking.
If exercise and changing the way you eat keep your blood sugar within a target range, you will not need to take diabetes medicine. If you need to take insulin, make sure you have a quick-sugar food, such as 3 or 4 glucose tablets or 3 pieces of hard candy, with you when you exercise in case you have symptoms of low blood sugar. Symptoms of low blood sugar include sweating, blurred vision, and confusion. If you think that your blood sugar is low, stop exercising, check your blood sugar level, and eat the snack.
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