How To Have A Healthy Pregnancy And Prevent Gestational Diabetes With Proper Diet And Lifestyle Changes

Gestational diabetes is a condition that affects growing numbers of pregnant women. It is a condition when a woman’s blood sugar gets too high, that usually goes away after birth of the baby. It can cause the baby to grow too quickly and result in premature delivery.

If you are worried about developing gestational diabetes, The good news is that you can prevent it with proper nutrition and exercise – all you need is to have the right knowledge and implement that knowledge for your own sake and for the sake of your baby.

When I was pregnant, I did not have that knowledge. I followed well-meaning, but inaccurate and dangerous advice that put my own health and the health of my son in danger. I put on too much weight, and I was very close to developing gestational diabetes. That’s why I want to share what I learned later, so that women who read it can avoid making the same mistakes.

Diet to prevent gestational diabetes does not differ from a healthy diet that we should all be following every day to ensure the best of health. We should be eating a diet that is based mostly on fresh plant foods – raw fruits, vegetables, and greens, with small amounts of nuts, seeds, whole grains, and beans. The bulk of the calories should be coming from unprocessed, preferably raw plant sources. Even in pregnancy, animal proteins, such as dairy and meats should be consumed in only small amounts.

When you are eating this type of diet, you don’t need to worry whether you consume enough protein, vitamins, minerals, fats, calcium, etc. Diet rich in green vegetables, green leaf salads, fruits and other natural foods, will provide you and your baby with all the nutrients you need need. Unprocessed plant foods contain all the proteins, fats, vitamins, calcium and other nutrients our body need in perfect proportions to properly function and stay healthy.

Diabetes is a preventable condition. Read more about gestational diabetes diet recommendations. Learn about normal blood glucose levels and how to prevent diabetes with proper nutrition and physical activity.

Why A Low GI Diet Is Important For Gestational Diabetes

If you have gestational diabetes it is essential that you implement a low GI diet so that you can get all the benefits that will assist you in the long term. The only way you will avoid developing type 2 diabetes is to change the way you eat by including nutritional healthy foods which will help you to manage your gestational diabetes. During the second and third trimesters, you will require more energy, but this does not mean that you need to eat more, even if there are two of you, you will only require around 1200 kj extra per day. It is vital that the extra kilojoules you add to your diet should be nutrient-rich foods.

The following guidelines shows you how to apply a low GI diet if you have gestational diabetes:

* Eat small amounts of food on a regular basis

* Ensure your diet includes fruits, vegetables, and salads

* Ensure you drink lots of water and avoid alcohol

* Limit the amount of foods that are high in saturated fats like butter, cream, biscuits, chips, cakes, takeaway foods and processed foods

* Limiting the amount of food and drinks that contain refined sugar or added sugar

* Try to avoid using iodised salt, this will allow you to prevent iodine deficiency

* Try to include pasta, legumes, rice, low GI breads, cereal, and low fat dairy products in your diet

* Add a good source of protein to your diet like chicken, eggs, nuts, seafood, fish, and lean meat

A daily low GI diet food guide would include:

* 6 to 10 servings of low GI breads, cereals and other starchy foods

* 5 to 6 servings of vegetables

* 3 servings of healthy fat-rich foods

* 3 servings of lean meat or alternatives

* 2 to 3 servings of low fat milk products

When you are breastfeeding your daily food guide will need to be adjusted slightly by adding more of the main food groups and limiting the amount of meat in your diet, the reason for this is that your iron needs are much higher during pregnancy. Your daily food guide while you are breastfeeding would include:

* 8 to 10 serves of low GI breads, cereals and other starchy foods

* 6 or more serves of vegetables

* 4 to 5 serves of fruits

* 3 serves of healthy fat-rich foods

* 2 serves of low fat milk products

* 2 serves of lean meat or alternatives

Having gestational diabetes can be managed if you implement a low GI diet, this will not only help you manage and control your diabetes much easier, but it will reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. You should aim high for you and your baby to achieve optimum health.

Discover more about Gestational Diabetes. Stop by Sue Kennedy’s site where you can find out all about how a Low GI Diet can assist you to avoid type 2 diabetes and maintain optimum health for you and your baby.