Gestational Diabetes

What is gestational diabetes?

Gestational diabetes is the fastest growing type of diabetes in Australia2. This is a form of diabetes that occurs during pregnancy. In most cases, the condition disappears after the baby is born.3

What causes gestational diabetes?

Gestational diabetes develops as your body can’t make enough insulin during your pregnancy. Insulin is a hormone that helps keep the sugar in your blood at the right level. During pregnancy, your body has to produce much more insulin to encounter the e ect of hormones by the placenta that helps your baby grow and develop. Such hormones could trigger the imbalance of insulin within your body.

How to manage gestational diabetes?

It’s recommended that you take a pregnancy oral glucose tolerance test between 24 and 28 weeks into the pregnancy. Following diagnosis, you may feel a range of emotions so give yourself some time to digest information. Management of gestational diabetes includes monitoring blood glucose levels, eating healthy, regular exercise and possibly insulin injections.4

Am I at risk of diabetes?

If you develop gestational diabetes, you have an increased risk of type 2 diabetes. Find out your risk by completing the risk calculator HERE.

If you’re worried about gestational diabetes, speak to your doctor and get referred to a specialist as required.