Gestational Diabetes - Failed One Hour Test

I had gestational diabetes with all three of my pregnancies and it wasn't that big of a deal to me.

I had big babies (10.1 lbs, 9.12 lbs, 9.1 lbs), but they were all delivered normally - I had vaginal deliveries with no complications so if you end up having it, don't stress yourself out. Just because you have gestational diabetes doesn't mean that you're going to have complications.

If you end up having it, you doctor will send you to see a dietitian/diabetes educator and they will tell you what to eat based on your weight ...

So don't worry, enjoy your pregnancy. Good luck.

Hi M. S
It can be scary and nerve racking, with my first 2 pregnancy's i was fine, with my third I developed gestational diabetes and I was worried at first. My doctor told me I had to cut out all sugar basically your body isn't making enough insulin so I watched what I ate and how much sweet stuff I took in including fruits, juice and carbs. My pregnancy went pretty smooth and my baby was only 6lb 13oz I was prepared for a bigger baby lol. the funny thing is my first 2 were bigger than the third. good luck to you and your family.

amyk.

I failed the one hour test and had to take the three hour. While I did not fail the three hour, my doctor wanted me to make dietary changes because my numbers were right at the cutoff.

First of all, don't worry that you've done something wrong. Under normal (un-pregnant lol) circumstances my health is outstanding - great blood pressure, blood sugars, etc. but the pregnancy hormones can wreak havoc on your body in ways you've never imagined! I still follow a clean eating plan yet I anticipate I will probably fail the glucose tests anyway. Not much I can do, so I just take it easy one day at a time.

If you do fail and have to make changed, tips that might help:
-try to eat 5-6 smaller meals a day (to help keep blood sugar levels nice and consistent without highs and lows)
-avoid processed/junk foods (basically if it is in a box or found in the middle of the store), as they are usually full of refined sugars that make your blood sugar raise violently and then crash shortly thereafter
-focus on lots of fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy and meats
-bread and pasta is okay just shoot for whole grain (flip the package over and look for 'whole grain' and avoid products that have 'enriched wheat flour')
-You may wish to read "Diabetes for Dummies", not that you're a dummy but because it is easy to read, understand, and implement.

Good luck to you and hope everything goes well.

It's very common to "fail" the one hour and pass the three hour. The one hour is just a screening test.

Should your 3 hour levels be elevated your doctor or midwife will refer you to a dietician to help you maintain a healthy diet. In a basic way it involves reducing carb intake.

All women have increased glucose levels in pregnancy due to hormonal changes. The problem with glucose levels that are higher than expected is that they can cause some issues for baby- namely lung immaturity, greater size, and problems regulating sugars after birth. So it is best to keep things under control.

I failed the first test with all three of my pregnancies and passed the three hour every time. I did not have to make any diet changes.

With both of my pregnancies, I failed the 1 hour but passed the 3 hour test. I highly recommend that you take something to eat directly following the end of the test. They never told me to do this and the first time I went into glycemic shock and about passed out. I thought for sure I had failed it but actually that was just my body dealing with all the sugar. So take something with you and eat it before you leave the building or you're liable to feel pretty terrible afterwards. Also, it is common to fail the 1st test so don't fret. There is a link to having gestational diabetes and diabetes for your child later in their life but that's not 100% of the time, just some of the time. Don't worry about your diet yet, if you need to change anything your doctor will get you in touch with a dietician. But until then, just take care of yourself and don't worry about this too much. Cross the bridge when and if you need to. Best wishes to you.

Hi M. S -

Diabetes is sadly becoming very common, and it's completely preventable. I don't want to be the "Scary advice Mom" but you seriously need to reduce (if not eliminate) most of the sugar you’re eating. If you don’t, then there is a good chance that you and your baby will have complications from the big D word. (diabetes) What has happened is that you have dulled your insulin receptors by eating sugar in high quantities. This isn’t uncommon, and it is definitely reversible. Once you dig your heels into a new way of eating and get rid of the sugar, your body should go back to being able to handle LOW amounts of sugar in the normal way. Your insulin response is screwy, but you can fix it. You NEED to fix it.

There are a few things that you need to keep in mind when making choices about what to eat: your body treats carbohydrates, sugar, sugar substitutes, and natural sugars from fruits and veggies in the same way. Once it gets into your tummy, your body can’t tell the difference, so it produces the EXACT SAME insulin response. Sugar substitutes might not have any calories, but you're not trying to restrict the number of calories you eat; you’re looking to reduce the insulin load.

Just eat natural foods. Shop on the perimeter of the grocery store - vegetables, fruit (in small quantities), meat section & eggs. Don't eat anything from a box or bag. (unless it’s raw nuts in a bag)

Start with the basic stuff - we use our slow cooker/pressure cookers a lot. We do all our grocery shopping on Sunday, and make a rough plan for the week. This helps you stay organized. "If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail" It'll be easy to feel tempted to just boil some noodles instead of taking the time to cook. If you find yourself in a pinch, have some tuna with olive oil/balsamic vinaigrette on it and a handful of nuts.

Phew....man I talk a lot! Sorry to overwhelm you...this is just something I know a little bit about. My husband is super smart and knows all about the scientific end of the spectrum, so we can always bounce questions off him if you need to. Unfortunately most doctors don't know a lot about nutrition. They might spend a few hours learning about it in Med school, but most don't take the time to delve deeply into it...hence the reason most Doctors give the SAME (and WRONG) dietary advice.

It's really common to fail the one hour test and then pass the 3 hour. I did it and they told me it happens all the time. Don't worry.

No, don't make any changes now. You want the test to be accurate, so just keep doing what you've been doing. I can't remember the percentage, but a very large number of moms fail the one hour and then pass the 3 hour. Don't stress about it.

IF you fail the 3 hour, your doctor will tell you what kind of menu to follow.

I failed the 1 hour with both of my pregnancies, but passed both 3 hour tests.

I failed the one hour, but passed the three hour. Bring LOTS to read while waiting!

There is a 50% failure rate for the one hour test. So don't worry.

Second, there are some that believe that gestational diabetes is an diagnosis looking for a disease. I myself, as a healthy, fit 37 year old refuse to take the test after having fainting taking the three hour test with my daughter. It isn't normal to consume that amount of sugar in such a short time and the test has so many issues it isn't funny.

In short, don't worry about it.