You are pregnant and in your routine check-ups, did the Doctor say your blood sugar levels are high ? Don’t get Anxious you are not alone As per International Diabetes Federation about 15% of Pregnant women are having Gestational Diabetes and in India alone there are 4 million pregnant women have gestational diabetes, So don’t worry . With Gestational Diabetes Diet you can take care of yourselves and your sweet angel.
Every women who is diagnosed with gestational diabetes is very curious to know why it happened to me, During pregnancy placenta produces hormones which impair the action of insulin in your cells , This is the most probable reason for gestational diabetes.
common point in gestational diabetes and type 2 diabetes is insulin resistance, you may also look at it as a warning bell. women who have gestational diabetes my have tendency to develop diabetes in a later stage of life.
So if you happen to have gestational diabetes and family history of diabetes you may have to take caution in the years to come”
It is very important to control gestational diabetes because the failure to manage your gestational diabetes can lead to complications in future life and effect your baby’s health , But there is always more than one solution for every single problem, One among the solutions to gestational diabetes is to have a balanced diet.
Don’t get panicked and worry ,
Few thumb rules should be kept in mind before you plan your gestational diabetes diet
- Eating frequent meals.
- Avoid eating late nights.
- Don’t stop taking carbohydrates.
- Keep yourself happy and free from stress.
- Avoid eating fruits in breakfast.
- say no to smoking.
- Avoid caffeine, caffeine is present in tea and coffee both.
I am listing out the foods which can be taken more often and foods which should be avoided or taken in less quantities based on the General Guidelines from The California Diabetes and pregnancy diet program. This program lists foods in the form pf pyramid.
From the pyramid above we shall list out the foods and categorize them as more often, limited, occasional and rare
Foods to avoid at any cost by a patient with gestational diabetes:
Diet for gestational diabetes calls for avoiding smoking cigarette and drinking alcohol and also avoiding foods high in calories and fat like chocolates, cakes, pastries, pizzas, Deep fried foods , soft drinks and even Tea and coffee.
Foods which can be taken occasionally or in limited portions :
Ideal gestational diabetes diet should have Animal products to minimum, Animal products in the sense Chicken, meat, Fish, beef , pork, eggs and even dairy products like milk, cheese and yoghurt also. All these are high protein foods but at the same time they have a lot of fat which means more insulin resistance.
Have fresh vegetables and fruits:
Vegetables and fruits are good, But some fruits are potentially harmful in rising blood sugar levels quickly, So it is important you avoid fruits like bananas and melons, and also it makes sense to avoid taking fruit juices because you eat a lot of sugar unknowingly.
Favour Foods rich in Fibre and plant protein:
Below foods stay on the base of the pyramid of Diet for Gestational Diabetes in India, which means the following foods can be consumed more.
Bhatura, chapati/roti, chole (garbanzo beans), dhal (lentils), dhokla, dosa, idli, khakra, medhu vada, murmura (puffed rice), naan, paratha, poha (rice flakes), puri, ragi roti, rajma (kidney beans), rice, tapioca (saboodana), thepla, upma/sooji (cream of wheat), vermicelli
You may also refer to the very resourceful gestationalsiabetesrecipes.com
The rules said by Doctor Neal Barnard also may help you to manage your gestational diabetes well