"How Does Diabetes Affect My Pregnancy?" - Cory Stieg
Getting tested for gestational diabetes is just another necessary discomfort that comes along with being pregnant, but it is a pretty important one. If you have gestational diabetes, you usually have to make slight lifestyle changes during the rest of your pregnancy to ensure that you – and your baby – are healthy postpartum. “During pregnancy, the placenta makes several hormones that counteract the effect of insulin,” said Rebecca Brightman, MD, assistant clinical professor of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive science at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. As a result, the pancreas needs to make more insulin to control blood sugar. When the balance gets out of whack, resulting in higher glucose levels, that would be gestational diabetes, Dr. Brightman added. If gestational diabetes is controlled, then a pregnant person doesn’t have to worry about birth or pregnancy risks any more than someone who doesn’t have diabetes. “However, if gestational diabetes is poorly controlled, there can be both maternal and fetal risks,” said Dr. Brightman.
- Rebecca Brightman, MD, Assistant Clinical Professor, Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Science, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai