Diet For Gestational Diabetes
If a woman is diagnosed with gestational diabetes, the first question that arises in her mind is: How to keep the blood sugar levels balanced? Regarding this, diet plays a very important role in the management of gestational diabetes.
In general, the diet of a woman suffering from gestational diabetes should be considerably high in protein than in fats and carbohydrates. The carbohydrates given in this case should be good carbohydrates that should include fruits, vegetables and complex carbohydrates (for example bread, cereal, pasta and rice). Your doctor will definitely ask you to cut down on food and drinks that contain high amounts of sugar such as soft drinks, fresh juices and pastries.
Remember! Once you are diagnosed with gestational diabetes, you should not reduce your meal timings/frequency per day. You will be required to eat about three moderate sized meals and one or two snacks per day. You should not skip your meals and snacks because it might get your blood sugar level low otherwise.
The goal of any diet in gestational diabetes is to provide a woman an adequate amount of energy, while maintaining glucose levels of the body. A pregnant woman usually needs 300 more calories per day in the second and the third trimesters than her daily requirement (when she is not pregnant). These calories also include micronutrients such as extra iron, calcium and vitamins.
Fluid intake should be plenty throughout the day. Here, fluids high in sugar should be avoided. They should be enjoyed mostly with meal times and snacks. A mini snack before bed time is also suggested in order to decrease the chances of a night time hypo-glycemic episode.
The division of calories to various components of food in gestational diabetes should be as follows:
Carbohydrates: They should make up less than half of the calories that you consume daily. You should know that high fibre whole grain carbohydrates are good choices because they are digested more slowly and make your blood sugar levels constant over the hours. While vegetables such as broccoli and spinach also have carbohydrates; and are considered to be extremely healthy for you.
Grains, starchy vegetables and beans: You should eat around 5 servings per day of these. One serving is equal to 1 slice of bread, 1 ounce cereal (ready to eat type), ½ cup of pasta or cooked rice and 1 small muffin. The reason why grains, pasta, rice and vegetables should be your diet components is because these foods are loaded with vitamins, fibres, minerals and good carbohydrates.
Proteins: You should eat 2 -3 servings of these per day. Your one serving should include 2-3 oz. of cooked meat/poultry/fish. It should also include ½ cup cooked beans, 1 egg or 2 tablespoons of peanut butter. You should definitely trim all the visible fat from your meat and instead of frying it, bake, roast, boil or grill it.
Apart from these, a hold on fatty food products should be kept and dairy products should be eaten but in small quantities.
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