Gestational diabetes - moderate carb AND low fat?
hellobaconplease
Posts: 108 Member
I am 25 weeks pregnant and just been diagnosed with GD a few days ago. The diabetes nurse called me to make an appointment but it's not until next week. In the mean time, she's just asked me to keep an eye on my eating and to have everything "low fat and moderate carb". Low fat dairy, lean meat etc. I raised my eyebrows but let her waffle on. She says a diet high in fat also messes with blood sugar readings.
I had GD with my last child in 2012 also but didn't get diagnosed until 34 weeks, didn't start with testing my blood sugars till 35 weeks, didn't follow the advice very well and was on metformin ar 37 weeks and had my baby at 39 weeks. So I'm lacking in a good experience to fall back on.
I'm doing a moderate carb and high fat thing at the moment. Her idea of moderate carbs is 180g, my idea is more like 60g. Protein I stick to about the 90-110g depending on the day and how much meat we can afford etc.
Where does the idea that high fat mucks things up comes from? Is that old fashioned advice? All I'll be left to eat is baked chicken breast at this rate. No thanks.
(P.S I did keto for most of 2015 so I think LCHF works well for me in general)
I had GD with my last child in 2012 also but didn't get diagnosed until 34 weeks, didn't start with testing my blood sugars till 35 weeks, didn't follow the advice very well and was on metformin ar 37 weeks and had my baby at 39 weeks. So I'm lacking in a good experience to fall back on.
I'm doing a moderate carb and high fat thing at the moment. Her idea of moderate carbs is 180g, my idea is more like 60g. Protein I stick to about the 90-110g depending on the day and how much meat we can afford etc.
Where does the idea that high fat mucks things up comes from? Is that old fashioned advice? All I'll be left to eat is baked chicken breast at this rate. No thanks.
(P.S I did keto for most of 2015 so I think LCHF works well for me in general)
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Replies
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I think people are just scared of fat. Please don't go low-fat-low-carb.1
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The idea come from manipulated science. There's some recent talk about it here.
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10367390/guardian-newspaper-article-on-sugar-vs-fat-as-the-culprit-in-obesity-epidemic#latest
It's hard to go against the advice a medical professional gives, but sometimes they are just wrong. And it's niteventheir fault really. They have faith in their education and training. Which is teaching based on the previously mentioned faulty science. Sad.
My daughters diabetes nurse has actually refused to treat my daughter and we have to see someone else now because Emily decided to start Keto. She insisted Emily would end up with diabetic Ketoacidosis. Lol! Which would only happen if she stopped taking insulin or took too little for too long. Doesn't give me much faith in her as a professional when she doesn't even understand how DKA even happens!
Anyway, it's just my opinion, and you need to monitor things carefully as you know and seem to be doing, but I think you're doing the right thing.
Welcome to the group!
Congrats on your pregnancy!2 -
@hellobaconplease best of success in sorting through this for the sake of both of you.
webmd.com/baby/gestational-diabetes-you
I am glad you have proven to yourself that your way of eating is working for you already.0 -
I had gestational diabetes with my most recent pregnancy--it's why my doctor has me in LCHF now, to try to help with avoiding full blown type 2.
My meal plan was basically high carb imo. 225g net carbs per day. I was on insulin by the second week and managed to keep things under control pretty well after that. I actually lost weight on their meal plan and my baby was healthy so I guess I can't complain too much. I suspect they don't go for low carb because the insulin lessons I got were not in depth enough to adjust amounts based on number of carbs eaten--it was more of a one size fits all approach. Metformin is not used in pregnancy in Canada except for mothers who were taking it for preexisiting conditions.1 -
Hi I had gestational diabetes in my 1st pregnancy 2011. My medical team recommended 150g of carbs with no more then 30g in a sitting. I had to help myself with insulin. They did not asked low fat. At the time they only said I would have to lower fat If I was gaining to much weight as a way to reduce my calorie intake but i actually lost weight. Gestational diabetes stayed afterwards. I had been on ketogenic diet for 3 months when I got pregnant again in December 2015. Despite being on keto I still needed insulin from the beginning of the pregnancy. My medical team approved my way of eating. I reintroduced carbs at 8weeks because I couldn't eat any more fat1
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Oh they cut my post! After reintroducing carbs things got worst insulin dose increased massively and I was gaining 1.3lbs a week until week 22. My medical team freak out about the weight gain and two dietician recommended to lower carb even below 150. One said to increase fat the other to increase protein. So I went back to my almost keto ways. I eat about 60g carb like you. Things are fine weight is stable medical team approves of the diet sugar in control. So it's feasible even if you need insulin. I don't know if this helps or reassures you I am not a Dr but this is my experience and I have the support of my Dr's so it makes me think you are on the right track. Still let them know so they can care properly for you and the baby.2
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I did see the diabetes nurse yesterday. On one hand she was amazed at my hba1c (was a 28 which is under 5%, I know different countries use different units to measure it). Gone DOWN from 31 at 6 weeks of pregnancy.
But, she's terrified ketones will destroy my baby's brain...
Her plan is 185g of carbs per day, low fat and to eat either bread, potato or fruit with every meal. 50g with each meal and the rest in snacks.
I gave 2 meals a go. My fasting sugars were waaay up this morning and I feel sick. Post meal was ok but not great like I was having previously.0 -
I didn't get to read all these, but there is a podcast online right now about this...
http://thediabetessummit.com/event
You just have to do a quick sign up - and then there is a link to this: http://thediabetessummit.com/lily-nichols/
Lily Nichols, RDN, CDE, CLT
A Real Food Approach to Gestational Diabetes0 -
hellobaconplease wrote: »I did see the diabetes nurse yesterday. On one hand she was amazed at my hba1c (was a 28 which is under 5%, I know different countries use different units to measure it). Gone DOWN from 31 at 6 weeks of pregnancy.
But, she's terrified ketones will destroy my baby's brain...
Her plan is 185g of carbs per day, low fat and to eat either bread, potato or fruit with every meal. 50g with each meal and the rest in snacks.
I gave 2 meals a go. My fasting sugars were waaay up this morning and I feel sick. Post meal was ok but not great like I was having previously.
Babies are naturally ketogenic, aren't they? We've had recent posts with that lately...
Regardless, I'd go back to your own plan, then fib about what you're eating as long as your numbers match, unless you feel like she can be educated...1 -
hellobaconplease wrote: »I did see the diabetes nurse yesterday. On one hand she was amazed at my hba1c (was a 28 which is under 5%, I know different countries use different units to measure it). Gone DOWN from 31 at 6 weeks of pregnancy.
But, she's terrified ketones will destroy my baby's brain...
Her plan is 185g of carbs per day, low fat and to eat either bread, potato or fruit with every meal. 50g with each meal and the rest in snacks.
I gave 2 meals a go. My fasting sugars were waaay up this morning and I feel sick. Post meal was ok but not great like I was having previously.
Out of control blood sugar is way more detrimental to a baby than ketones. If nothing else, consider this -- morning sickness is very common among women, to the point that many can't hold down much, if any, food their entire pregnancy. What do you think the body runs on in those situations? You guessed it -- ketones. And you know what? Their babies aren't brain damaged. (In fact, my mom was one such mother. She managed to hold food down just long enough to not totally starve us both. I have an IQ that qualifies me for Mensa. Clearly, I was not negatively affected by those conditions.)4 -
Yeah I guessed as much. I thought I'd give it a few days to see how it felt. My numbers seem good but I just don't feel right. I haven't been eating the 20g of carbs per day that I used to for ages now anyway, but 180g is insane. I don't don't see how that is a reduced amount, it sounds about what most people would eat surely? I'm aiming for about 80g and exercising after each meal.
I had pretty bad morning sickness this time that I went to hospital a few times for and baby seemed just fine at the 21 week scan I had.
So my numbers were...
Fasting: 5.9mmol/L (106mg/dL)
2 hours after breakfast: 5.2mmol/L (93mg/dL)
Before lunch: 4.8mmol/L (86mg/dL)
2 hours after lunch: (which involved bread bleh) 5.3mmol/L (95mg/dL)
All was fine but the fasting.
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Aside from the fasting those numbers aren't bad. You may just wind up on overnight insulin (slow release) if it keeps spiking in the mornings. If you're in Canada they will do insulin sooner rather than later.
The finger sticks to check your glucose were worse than injections. Finger sticks hurt more.0 -
hellobaconplease wrote: »Yeah I guessed as much. I thought I'd give it a few days to see how it felt. My numbers seem good but I just don't feel right. I haven't been eating the 20g of carbs per day that I used to for ages now anyway, but 180g is insane. I don't don't see how that is a reduced amount, it sounds about what most people would eat surely? I'm aiming for about 80g and exercising after each meal.
I had pretty bad morning sickness this time that I went to hospital a few times for and baby seemed just fine at the 21 week scan I had.
So my numbers were...
Fasting: 5.9mmol/L (106mg/dL)
2 hours after breakfast: 5.2mmol/L (93mg/dL)
Before lunch: 4.8mmol/L (86mg/dL)
2 hours after lunch: (which involved bread bleh) 5.3mmol/L (95mg/dL)
All was fine but the fasting.
No, those numbers aren't what most people eat normally. The standard recommendation here is 300-400 grams of carbs daily, if I remember. My endocrinologist told me that dropping down to 150 grams daily is medically considered low carb and would help me, but he wanted me at 50 grams.
When I went off low carb at the holidays, I easily fit in 300-500 grams a day while binging my brains out, and even most of those weren't intentionally high carb foods (Fritos are evil, I'll just say)... It was awful. I tracked just to see how awful it was, so it was after the fact, but I might have missed some stuff. At my normal daily worst, I could easily see how I was eating more than this, if not double or more on occasion.
It's no wonder that I put off going low carb for so many years. At my levels, dropping to that must have made me feel like I would starve and have to eat all the terrible foods! LOL at myself...0
