Consuming too much sugar during pregnancy leads to many problems for you, including obesity and gestational diabetes. To observe sugar consumption and prevent diabetes, you can use the glycemic index. The glycemic index is a measure that shows how much a food increases your blood sugar. When women’s bodies cannot produce enough insulin during pregnancy, women develop diabetes called gestational diabetes, which increases after twenty weeks. For this reason, the glycemic index plays an important role in the last weeks of your pregnancy.
- Maintain a healthy weight
- Proper diet and low sugar
- Healthy and regular sports
It reduces the risk of diabetes.
Which women are more prone to suffering from gestational diabetes?
There are several different groups of women whose high consumption of sugar increases the risk of developing diabetes during pregnancy. These groups are:
- Women who are obese and overweight (their body mass index is more than 25).
- Elderly women who give birth for the first time.
- Women who have a family history of diabetes or had diabetes during their previous pregnancy.
- Women whose family has diabetes.
- Women who have previously given birth to a child weighing 4 kilograms or 10 pounds or more.
- Women who have had several miscarriages or stillbirths before.
What are the consequences of consuming too much sugar for pregnant women?
After you consume sweet food and drink, sucrose is released in your body, and glucose increases after that, and insulin is released to absorb sugar, which causes you to feel tired after the increase in energy.
By consuming enough sugar throughout the day, you keep your blood sugar stable and your weight does not increase.
But consuming too much sugar will cause you to develop diabetes. Pregnant women who develop diabetes can develop severe pregnancy diseases, such as:
- Infectious diseases
- Risk of preeclampsia
- Increased risk of premature birth
- Possible risk of diabetes in subsequent pregnancies
- Increased risk of type 2 diabetes
- Risk of cardiovascular disease
Consequences of consuming too much sugar for the fetus during pregnancy
In mothers who consume a lot of sugar during pregnancy, the fetus suffers many injuries and the baby weighs more than 4 kg at birth and has complications including the following:
- Complications such as shoulder dystocia or shoulder defect or clavicle fracture
- Risk of cardiovascular diseases
- Risk of infectious diseases
How much sugar can pregnant women consume per day?
In general, there is no answer to this question. If you have a normal weight and do not have a history of diabetes, you should not consume more than 7 sugar cubes or 30 grams of free sugar per day, which should not exceed 5% of daily calories.
Free sugar: means glucose, fructose, and sucrose added to foods and drinks, as well as sugars that are naturally present in syrups, honey, and juices.
You can consume sugar in moderation, but if you are overweight, it is better to avoid consuming sugar. It is better to consult your nutritionist before consuming sugar.
Best diet for pregnant women?
The best diet for you at the beginning of pregnancy is the Mediterranean diet because it contains vegetables, fruits, and fish, this diet is very useful for you and avoids drinking soft drinks and juices.
Regular exercise during pregnancy can help the mother and the fetus. For this reason, you should try to exercise for at least 30 minutes every day. It may also be useful for you to make an appointment with your doctor so that he can check how far along you are in your pregnancy.
Doing special exercises during pregnancy helps you and your baby’s health, so it is better to include 20 to 30 minutes of exercise in your daily schedule.
Can we give sugar to our baby after giving birth?
Try to refrain from giving industrial sugars after giving birth to a child until the age of two, because children develop a desire for sweet foods, and their taste for sweet things increases.
Low sugar foods during pregnancy
If you are tempted to eat sweets and cakes at events and parties, you should know that it is better for you and your baby to avoid consuming too much sugar and better alternatives, including fruits such as pineapple, mango, and berries, or dried fruits. They include Apricots or plums, which have a lot of vitamins and minerals make sure that they have natural water and no sugar when choosing canned food.
- Use carbonated or regular water instead of soft drinks
- Use Greek yogurt instead of ice cream
- Instead of using biscuits, use carrots or hummus
- Nuts instead of sweets
Conclusion
As much as possible, try to avoid eating sugar during pregnancy because it has many harms and replaces it with natural food such as honey, because this sugar enters the blood of the fetus in addition to the mother’s blood, the risk of contracting various cardiovascular diseases. It increases breathing and obesity.
