Gestational diabetes, also known as gestational diabetes mellitus, is a condition in which too much glucose stays in the blood instead of being metabolized into energy. Some women are at risk because of their current medical conditions and\/or lifestyle choices. Other times, it is diagnosed in women who have never had blood sugar problems. In either scenario, gestational diabetes poses a health risk to both mother and baby, which is why healthcare providers work so carefully to prevent it and treat it as soon as it is diagnosed.<\/span><\/p>\n Gestational diabetes is usually diagnosed around the 24th week of pregnancy, through a glucose screening test, when the mother's blood sugar levels are consistently higher than they should be. In most cases, women diagnosed with gestational diabetes have never had diabetes before. Although the causes are not fully understood, it is thought that hormones produced in the placenta block the action of the mother's insulin, causing insulin resistance, which makes it difficult for the body to regulate normal blood sugar levels.<\/span><\/p>\n When the body is no longer able to produce and use the right amount of insulin to convert glucose into energy, glucose levels begin to rise. This condition is called hyperglycemia. All this extra glucose passes through the bloodstream, into the placenta, through the umbilical cord to the fetus. This can be dangerous for both you and the fetus. . <\/span>Now, your baby's body is working hard to produce enough insulin through its own pancreas to handle all that excess glucose. Meanwhile, all that extra "energy" isn't being used, so it starts to accumulate as fat tissue. This can lead to a condition called macrosomia, or a "fat" baby.<\/span><\/p>\n Some of the health risks caused by gestational diabetes include:<\/span><\/p>\n Gestational diabetes can lead to natural weight gain, and this can make it difficult for the baby to pass through the birth canal, thus leading to a cesarean section.<\/span><\/p>\n If you have gestational diabetes, your obstetrician may decide that your baby should be born early, instead of at term, because of his or her size. Babies born prematurely may not have fully developed lungs, which can lead to respiratory distress syndrome and a risk of further complications.<\/span><\/p>\n For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. So, many babies who have all this extra glucose in their system (via the mother) have increased insulin production. As they emerge from the womb, this can cause severely low blood sugar levels (called hypoglycemia). In infants, severe hypoglycemia can cause seizures.<\/span><\/p>\n Babies born to mothers with gestational diabetes have a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes later in life. If you have gestational diabetes, you are also more likely to develop type 2 diabetes when you grow up.<\/span><\/p>\n In cases where gestational diabetes is not treated, it can lead to fetal death.<\/span><\/p>\n Women with gestational diabetes have higher rates of hypertension and are at greater risk of developing a very dangerous condition called preeclampsia.<\/span><\/p>\n All of the above are examples of why prenatal care is so important. Treating gestational diabetes before it becomes a problem is essential for your and your baby\u2019s health. Once diagnosed, your gynecologist will work closely with you on diet and lifestyle changes that can naturally lower your blood sugar levels. They will continue to monitor you and your baby closely, ensuring that you are both as healthy as possible. If necessary, medications may be prescribed to further control your blood sugar levels.<\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u03a4\u03af \u03b5\u03af\u03bd\u03b1\u03b9 \u03bf \u03b4\u03b9\u03b1\u03b2\u03ae\u03c4\u03b7\u03c2 \u03ba\u03cd\u03b7\u03c3\u03b7\u03c2; \u039f \u03b4\u03b9\u03b1\u03b2\u03ae\u03c4\u03b7\u03c2 \u03ba\u03cd\u03b7\u03c3\u03b7\u03c2, \u03b5\u03c0\u03af\u03c3\u03b7\u03c2 \u03b3\u03bd\u03c9\u03c3\u03c4\u03cc\u03c2 \u03c9\u03c2 \u03c3\u03b1\u03ba\u03c7\u03b1\u03c1\u03ce\u03b4\u03b7\u03c2 \u03b4\u03b9\u03b1\u03b2\u03ae\u03c4\u03b7\u03c2 \u03b5\u03b3\u03ba\u03c5\u03bc\u03bf\u03c3\u03cd\u03bd\u03b7\u03c2, \u03b5\u03af\u03bd\u03b1\u03b9 \u03bc\u03b9\u03b1 \u03ba\u03b1\u03c4\u03ac\u03c3\u03c4\u03b1\u03c3\u03b7 \u03ba\u03b1\u03c4\u03ac \u03c4\u03b7\u03bd \u03bf\u03c0\u03bf\u03af\u03b1 \u03b7 \u03c5\u03c0\u03b5\u03c1\u03b2\u03bf\u03bb\u03b9\u03ba\u03ae \u03c0\u03bf\u03c3\u03cc\u03c4\u03b7\u03c4\u03b1 \u03b3\u03bb\u03c5\u03ba\u03cc\u03b6\u03b7\u03c2 \u03c0\u03b1\u03c1\u03b1\u03bc\u03ad\u03bd\u03b5\u03b9 \u03c3\u03c4\u03bf \u03b1\u03af\u03bc\u03b1 \u03b1\u03bd\u03c4\u03af \u03bd\u03b1 \u03bc\u03b5\u03c4\u03b1\u03b2\u03bf\u03bb\u03af\u03b6\u03b5\u03c4\u03b1\u03b9 \u03c3\u03b5 \u03b5\u03bd\u03ad\u03c1\u03b3\u03b5\u03b9\u03b1. \u039f\u03c1\u03b9\u03c3\u03bc\u03ad\u03bd\u03b5\u03c2 \u03b3\u03c5\u03bd\u03b1\u03af\u03ba\u03b5\u03c2 \u03b4\u03b9\u03b1\u03c4\u03c1\u03ad\u03c7\u03bf\u03c5\u03bd \u03ba\u03af\u03bd\u03b4\u03c5\u03bd\u03bf \u03bb\u03cc\u03b3\u03c9 \u03c4\u03b7\u03c2 \u03c4\u03c1\u03ad\u03c7\u03bf\u03c5\u03c3\u03b1\u03c2 \u03b9\u03b1\u03c4\u03c1\u03b9\u03ba\u03ae\u03c2 \u03ba\u03b1\u03c4\u03ac\u03c3\u03c4\u03b1\u03c3\u03b7\u03c2 \u03ae\/\u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03c4\u03c9\u03bd \u03b5\u03c0\u03b9\u03bb\u03bf\u03b3\u03ce\u03bd \u03c4\u03bf\u03c5 \u03c4\u03c1\u03cc\u03c0\u03bf\u03c5 \u03b6\u03c9\u03ae\u03c2 \u03c4\u03bf\u03c5\u03c2. \u0386\u03bb\u03bb\u03b5\u03c2 \u03c6\u03bf\u03c1\u03ad\u03c2, \u03b4\u03b9\u03b1\u03b3\u03b9\u03b3\u03bd\u03ce\u03c3\u03ba\u03b5\u03c4\u03b1\u03b9 \u03c3\u03b5 \u03b3\u03c5\u03bd\u03b1\u03af\u03ba\u03b5\u03c2 \u03c0\u03bf\u03c5 \u03b4\u03b5\u03bd […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":4805,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[173],"tags":[68,49,58,43,109,108,84,133],"class_list":["post-4806","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-173","tag-gynecological-examinations","tag-49","tag-58","tag-43","tag-109","tag-108","tag-84","tag-egkymosyni"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kyriazaki.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4806","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kyriazaki.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kyriazaki.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kyriazaki.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kyriazaki.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4806"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kyriazaki.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4806\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kyriazaki.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4805"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kyriazaki.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4806"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kyriazaki.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4806"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kyriazaki.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4806"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Risks for developing gestational diabetes include:<\/span><\/h2>\n
\n
Gestational diabetes leads to several health risks for the mother and fetus<\/span><\/h2>\n
Big babies<\/span><\/h3>\n
Premature birth leading to respiratory distress<\/span><\/h3>\n
Low blood sugar after birth<\/span><\/h3>\n
Higher risk of type 2 diabetes<\/span><\/h3>\n
Fetal mortality<\/span><\/h3>\n
Risk of hypertension and preeclampsia<\/span><\/h3>\n