Living with Diabetes
Before Pregnancy
Despite advances, babies born to women with diabetes, especially women with poor diabetes control, are still at greater risk for birth defects. High blood glucose levels and ketones (substances that in large amounts are poisonous to the body) pass through the placenta to the baby. These increase the chance of birth defects.
For this reason, good blood glucose control before you get pregnant is very important. Most women do not know they are pregnant until the baby has been growing for two to four weeks. During the first six weeks of pregnancy, the baby's organs are forming. Your blood glucose levels during these early weeks affect the baby's growing organs. High blood glucose levels can lead to birth defects.
Because these early weeks are so important to your baby, you need to plan your pregnancy. If your blood glucose levels are not in good control, work to bring your diabetes under control before getting pregnant. It is a good idea to be in good blood glucose control three to six months before you plan to get pregnant. You'll want to keep excellent blood glucose control during pregnancy, and after as well.
How do high blood glucose levels cause problems?
- Big Babies
When extra sugar is in your blood, the baby is "fed" extra sugar, too. All this excess sugar can make the baby too big and fat. Delivery of big babies is harder on mom and baby. - Baby Hypoglycemia
Because your baby is getting extra sugar, your baby's pancreas makes extra insulin. After birth, it's hard for the baby to stop putting out extra insulin. The baby must be watched, and treated if the blood glucose level drops too low. - Jaundice
For some reason, jaundice happens more often in babies of women with diabetes. Jaundice is a build-up of old red blood cells that the body can't process fast enough. This problem goes away rapidly with treatment.
