Gestational diabetes is a type of diabetes that develops during pregnancy. It’s different from both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Like other forms of diabetes, it causes high levels of glucose (a simple sugar) in the blood. Gestational diabetes develops when various pregnancy hormones and body changes — including weight gain — cause cells to use insulin (a hormone that regulates blood glucose) less efficiently. As many as 9.2 percent of pregnant women in the United States develop gestational diabetes, according to a 2014 report in the journal Preventing Chronic Disease.
Symptoms of Gestational Diabetes
For most women, gestational diabetes doesn’t cause any noticeable signs or symptoms. If you do experience symptoms (which are caused by high blood glucose levels), they may include:
Blurred visionFatigueExcessive thirst and urinationNausea and vomiting not associated with normal pregnancyWeight lossIncreased rate of infections, particularly in the urinary tract (bladder), vagina, and skin
These symptoms tend to go away after giving birth, when blood glucose levels return to normal.
Gestational Diabetes Complications
Uncontrolled gestational diabetes can cause a number of complications in both pregnant women and their babies. It can raise your risk of developing preeclampsia, a potentially deadly condition during pregnancy that involves high blood pressure, too much protein in the urine, swelling, and depression. You may require a Cesarean section (C-section) because your baby is considerably larger than normal, a condition known as macrosomia. And if your blood glucose levels aren’t tightly controlled during pregnancy, your baby will have an increased risk of dying before or soon after birth, and may be born with:
Temporary hypoglycemia (low blood sugar)Jaundice (yellowing of the skin and eyes)Breathing problems, such as respiratory distress syndrome
Both you and your baby will also have a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes later in life.
Diagnosing Gestational Diabetes
Screening tests are available to help detect gestational diabetes, but there has long been some disagreement about who should be screened during pregnancy. In 2014, the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force reviewed the scientific literature for evidence on the potential benefits — and harms — of screening women for gestational diabetes. Based on this review, the task force recommended that all pregnant women be screened for gestational diabetes after 24 weeks of pregnancy (typically between 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy). The task force didn’t find enough evidence to recommend screening for all women before 24 weeks of pregnancy, but doctors may recommend early screening of women at high risk for the condition. The screening test for gestational diabetes is a simple non-fasting oral glucose tolerance test. For this test, you’ll drink a liquid sweetened with glucose. After an hour has passed, your doctor will test your blood glucose level to see how much of the sugar your body has processed. If you have a high blood glucose level on the screening test, you’ll need to take a second test, known as a fasting oral glucose tolerance test. For this test, you’ll need to fast for eight hours, then drink another sugary drink at your doctor’s office. Your doctor will then check your blood glucose level one, two, and three hours after you drink the liquid to find out for sure whether you have gestational diabetes. Although the A1C test — a measure of long-term blood glucose control — is commonly used to help diagnose type 1 and type 2 diabetes, it’s not used to diagnosis (or manage) gestational diabetes.
