Sugar, Sugar: Gestational Diabetes (continued)

It's been about 3 weeks since I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes, and it's been, to say the least, a little bittersweet.


I met with a nutritionist and endocrinologist twice already, and have been checking my blood 6 sugar times daily, keeping meticulous logs of blood sugar levels and writing down everything I eat. So far things are more or less under control through changes I've made in my diet. No need for insulin, thank goodness.

But even so, it's a lot like walking a tightrope, and since I changed my diet, my ideas about food have really been challenged.

The obvious change is adding more proteins and veggies to my diet, and to reduce carbs and eliminate simple sugars. That's definitely part of it. But it's not that simple, especially when pregnant.

Portion size is really important, which means I have to eat 5 or 6 times per day, or every 2-3 hours (including late at night) to keep blood sugar levels on an even keel. What's more, if I wait too long between meals, I end up eating too much at the next meal, feeling full and uncomfortable (especially now in my 8th month of pregnancy!) and levels end up getting elevated because I get the carb craving.

The timing of eating certain foods is also critical. The breakfast meal has to be protein based, with just a touch of carbs. The carbs, of course, have to be whole grains. No cereal is allowed in the morning (now that's the antithesis of the American Special K morning!)and very little, if any fruit. Half a grapefruit seems to work ok, but other fruits just have too high a sugar content. Sometimes I even have some veggies for breakfast as a side dish, like steamed spinach or kale.

My nutritionist told me that fruit is a necessary part of my diet, but that fruit should generally be eaten as part of my snack regiment, not part of meals.


Eating late at night also has thrown me off -- I once went on a diet which restricted food after 6 p.m. Not in this case! Strangely enough, it's important to have a late night snack of carbs shortly before sleeping to keep blood ketone levels low or negative.

Ketones are substances that are made when the body breaks down fat for energy. Normally, your body gets the energy it needs from carbohydrate in your diet. But stored fat is broken down and ketones are made if your diet does not contain enough carbohydrates to supply the body with sugar (glucose) for energy or if your body cannot use blood sugar (glucose) properly. Hence, the need for carbs at night. Usually you'll find me at night munching on a bowl of Trader Joe's Os with milk, and I'll wake up with negative or minimal ketone levels.

The other thing I've found is I need a glass of milk for added proteins during meals. I used to drink almond milk, which is also healthy, and has a lower sugar content than milk. However, it's protein level is significantly lower.

If anything, these dietary changes have challenged me to rethink the quality of my nutrition, and ideas I previously had about what is healthy eating. And that is always a good thing.