Gestational diabetes is a disorder of glucose tolerance, or true diabetes, that appears or is diagnosed for the first time during pregnancy. Six weeks after giving birth, the woman''s condition must be determined again according to one of the following categories: Diabetes. Impaired fasting glucose- IFG.
Impaired glucose tolerance - IGT.
In gestational diabetes, as in cases leading to type 2 diabetes, insulin secretion alone is unable to overcome insulin resistance, which makes it appear generally in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy.
Symptoms of gestational diabetes
The vast majority of women with gestational diabetes do not show any symptoms of the disease. Some of them may notice the following symptoms:
Excessive thirst.
Hunger more than usual.
Needing to urinate more than necessary.
Causes and risk factors of gestational diabetes
The following are the most important causes and risk factors for gestational diabetes.
1. The cause of gestational diabetes
During pregnancy, hormonal changes occur that make it difficult to tolerate glucose, as pregnancy causes a state of physiological stress in the woman’s body that leads to an increase in stress hormones, adrenaline, and cortisol. Both of these hormones work to a certain degree in all humans all the time, and partly One of their effects is to raise the level of glucose in the blood.
In cases of distress, their secretion increases, and therefore the level of glucose in the blood rises among the other hormones that raise blood sugar, so we find glucagon secreted by the pancreas, in addition to pregnancy-specific hormones secreted by the placenta.
These hormones raise the level of glucose (hyperglycemia) in the blood and counteract the activity of insulin.
Some researchers at Helsinki University Hospital evaluated 391 women who gave birth between 1984-1994 at a university hospital where they had gestational diabetes, as the researchers discovered that there are some autoantibodies at an early stage of pregnancy that may be the reason behind this.
2. Risk factors
The following are the most important risk factors
Older women who develop gestational diabetes.
Overweight women.
Women who have had gestational diabetes in the past.
The presence of the problem of polycystic ovaries in the patient.
Having a family history of diabetes.
Complications of gestational diabetes
The development of gestational diabetes during pregnancy exposes pregnant women and their fetuses to possible risks.
Among the most important complications of diabetes that appear late in pregnancy
The birth of a child with gigantism (Large for Gestational age - LGA).
Polyhydramnios.
The child has respiratory distress syndrome (Hyaline Membrane Disease).
Resorting to cesarean section.
Chronic Hypertension in the mother.
Increased risk of diabetes in the future mother.
There is no excessive risk of malformations, because the fetus''s organs complete their development at the end of the first trimester before the onset of gestational diabetes.
Diagnosis of gestational diabetes
Diagnosis is made through a glucose tolerance test (GCT - Glucose Challenge Test).
Before undergoing the examination, a diet rich in carbohydrates should be maintained for at least three days, more than 150 grams per day, and smoking and physical exertion should be refrained from.
The glucose concentration is checked before drinking glucose, one hour after, two and three hours after drinking 100 grams of sugar.
It takes two abnormal examinations to define the condition as gestational diabetes.
The normal maximum values for glucose are
When fasting: 95 milligrams / deciliter.
One hour later: 180 mg/dL.
Two hours later: 155 mg/dL.
Three hours later: 140 mg/dL.
Gestational diabetes treatment
Treatment, from the moment of diagnosis, is based on a pregnancy-specific diet with low available sugar.
If the desired levels of sugar, which appear in the cumulative glucose test (HbA1c), are not reached, and it is less than 6%, then insulin must be added, as it is the only drug approved today to lower levels of sugar during pregnancy.
Prevention of gestational diabetes
Some of the most important ways to prevent gestational diabetes are
The keenness of the pregnant woman to remain in an active state.
Eat healthy food.
Reducing excess weight.
