This is a form of diabetes you can develop when you're pregnant. It usually goes away after birth. But we need to manage gestational diabetes for your health and for the health of your baby.
What causes gestational diabetes? Changes your body goes through during pregnancy affect the way your cells use insulin. That's a hormone your cells use to turn blood sugar into energy. With gestational diabetes, your cells can't use insulin well.
Your risk for this form of diabetes is higher if you're overweight, obese or inactive. Having a close family member with diabetes raises your risk. Some other health conditions can make you more likely to have it, too.
What are the symptoms? This form of diabetes most often happens in the later part of pregnancy. And in most cases, you won't notice any symptoms. We find it when we do screening tests as part of your routine care.
How do we treat it? In some cases, lifestyle changes are enough. You'll need to check your blood sugar regularly and focus on eating a healthy diet. We'll show you how. You may also benefit from regular physical activity. And if those don't control it, you may need to take insulin or some other medication. We'll create a plan that's right for you.
If you don't manage gestational diabetes, you raise the risk for complications. These include things like high blood pressure and having a very large baby. You may need a Cesarean section. Your baby could be born early or have low blood sugar. You could also develop type 2 diabetes later in life. So it's best to take steps to manage it now.