Free Article: Gestational Diabetes Diet

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Understanding The Benefit And Need Of A Gestational Diabetes Diet
By M. A. Fulmar

For a mother to remain healthy during pregnancy and have a successful birth a nutritionally balanced diet is important. However for a woman who has gestational diabetes then diet is often the only thing to keep blood sugar levels normal before having to resort to insulin injections. With a gestational diabetes diet a woman should pay specific attention to the total calories eaten each day and avoid foods that cause blood sugar levels of increase while focusing on foods that help to maintain normal blood sugar levels. To plan for specific gestational diabetes diet needs a woman should talk with a dietitian.

How To Eat During Pregnancy

A proper gestational diabetes diet will help the mother and fetus meet their nutritional needs, which for women with diabetes this means a diet that will keep the blood sugars as normal as possible. During the second and third trimesters of pregnancy you will need to increase the daily calorie intake by 300 calories. This means that from fourteen weeks up until delivery it is a good idea for women to take in 2100 calories a day.

During pregnancy vitamins and minerals are also required in larger amounts. To help with this it is a good idea to increase the intake of diary products that are low in fat, whole grain cereals and breads, fruits and vegetables. Prenatal vitamins are often recommended however they do not replace a good gestational diabetes diet. Prenatal vitamins should be taken at night before bed or in the morning when the stomach is empty so that the iron will be absorbed better.

Foods To Avoid During Pregnancy

To keep blood sugars in a normal range during pregnancy a woman should avoid foods containing high amounts of sugar. This includes foods such as pies, cakes, cookies, ice cream, candy, soft drinks, commercially fruited yogurt, jams and jelly. With a gestational diabetes diet a woman should only drink fruit juices with a meal and only six ounces. A large amount of sugar is found in fruit juices even those that claim no sugar is added. The best choice is tomato juice since it contains the lowest amount of sugars.

Foods To Eat During Pregnancy

Vegetables, cereal, grains, beans, peas and other starchy foods are good for a gestational diabetes diet since they are complex carbohydrates. These types of foods added to a diet will help decrease the amount of insulin required by your body to help keep the blood sugar levels in a normal range. Whole grain cereals and breads, fruits, vegetables and legumes are good because they are high in dietary fiber. These foods are important to have in a diet since they help the digestive process. While fats are needed to help absorb vitamins your diet should also be low in fat.

Author Details:
M. A. Fulmar writes about Diabetes and other health matters for various web sites including, The A to Z of and Information Junkie.

Source: Free Health Article Directory

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