Welcome back, beautiful GDMamas! Embarking on the journey of motherhood brings a mixed bag of joy, love, and a sometimes a sprinkle of challenges. Among those challenges, managing gestational diabetes (GD) tends to find a spot.
Then, throw in a common cold or a bout of flu, and things might feel a tad more tricky.
Today, we're diving into a lesser-discussed but essential concern – how an illness can affect your blood sugar blood sugar levels amidst the sniffles and sneezes.
We’ll delve into the nitty-gritty of how common illnesses can impact blood sugar management during pregnancy with GD. We'll unwrap the science behind what's happening in your body when you're under the weather, and how it intertwines with blood sugar levels. Plus, we’ll share a bundle of practical tips to keep those numbers steady and make sick days a bit less daunting.
How Illness Affects Blood Sugar Levels
Understanding the underlying mechanisms of how illness influences blood sugar levels, especially amidst the journey of gestational diabetes, provides a blueprint for better management strategies.
Hormonal Fluctuations:
During times of illness, your body naturally gears up to fight off the invading bacteria or viruses. One of the responses is the release of stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline.
These hormones act as messengers, signaling the liver to produce and release more glucose into the bloodstream to provide the extra energy needed to combat the illness.
Impact on Blood Sugar Levels:
The surge of glucose can cause blood sugar levels to rise, and for those with gestational diabetes, this can result in blood sugar levels moving beyond the desired range.
Moreover, the secretion of stress hormones can interfere with the effectiveness of insulin, the hormone responsible for regulating blood sugar levels, making management a bit more challenging during illness.
Increased Insulin Resistance:
The hormonal fluctuations during illness can also cause a temporary increase in insulin resistance. Insulin acts like a key, opening the doors of cells to allow glucose to enter. However, during illness, the stress hormones can alter the effectiveness of this key, making it harder for insulin to do its job, exacerbating insulin resistance.
Concerns for Gestational Diabetes:
The temporary rise in insulin resistance during illness can be particularly concerning for those managing gestational diabetes, adding another layer of complexity to blood sugar management. This situation highlights the importance of closely monitoring blood sugar and, if necessary, adjusting treatment plans under the guidance of a healthcare provider during such times.
Altered Eating Patterns:
Illness can significantly impact your appetite and dietary habits, making it challenging to adhere to your usual eating patterns due to loss of appetite, altered taste, or nausea.
Skipping meals or inadequate eating can lead to a drop in blood sugar levels, while turning to comfort foods might cause a spike in blood sugar levels. Particularly with gestational diabetes, it's crucial to maintain a balanced diet and consistent carbohydrate intake for managing blood sugar levels effectively.
We understand that maintaining this balance can be difficult, especially during times of illness. Try your best to avoid deviation from your regular eating patterns as it could lead to fluctuations in blood sugar levels.
Strategies to Stabilize Blood Sugar Levels While Sick
Increase Water Intake
When combating common ailments like colds or the flu, the body's demand for fluids escalates due to symptoms like fever, sweating, or even increased urination. For those managing gestational diabetes, staying well-hydrated is critical. Hydration helps in maintaining a more balanced blood sugar level, while dehydration can lead to concentrated blood sugar levels, making the management of gestational diabetes more challenging during illness.
What You Can Do
Aim for at least eight to ten 8-ounce glasses of water per day, or as directed by your healthcare provider, to replenish lost fluids and aid in managing your blood sugar levels.
Tasty Alternatives:
If plain water doesn't suit your palate, consider adding a splash of lemon or enjoying herbal teas to meet your fluid intake needs. These minor adjustments can make achieving your hydration goals more enjoyable.
Beneficial Broth:
Bone broth is another comforting and nourishing option. Besides being warm and soothing, bone broth is high in protein, which can be beneficial in stabilizing blood sugar levels.
Protein’s Blood Sugar Balancing Act: The protein in bone broth supports a more gradual glucose release into the bloodstream, helping to avoid sharp spikes and troughs in blood sugar levels that could be experienced with higher carbohydrate or sugar-laden beverages.
Gut Health Advantage: Moreover, the amino acids in bone broth support gut health, which plays a pivotal role in overall health, including blood sugar regulation.
Preparing a batch of bone broth and keeping it handy in the refrigerator or freezer can be a part of your 'sick-day plan', offering both hydration and nutritional support when you’re feeling under the weather.
Rest and Sleep
Illness places a significant burden on your body, sending it into a high-alert state where stress hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline become more abundant. These hormones can cause blood sugar levels to rise, creating an additional challenge for individuals with gestational diabetes. On the brighter side, adequate rest and sleep are powerful tools in mitigating this stress, reducing the production of stress hormones, and improving insulin sensitivity, which is crucial for managing gestational diabetes.
Moreover, sleep plays a vital role in the immune system’s ability to fight off infections. During the restorative stages of sleep, the body gets a chance to produce and distribute immune cells and substances that help fend off pathogens, aiding in a quicker recovery. When deprived of rest or sleep, the immune system's armory dwindles, making it harder to combat infections and subsequently prolonging the recovery period. This interplay between sleep, immune response, and blood sugar management forms a trilogy that significantly impacts those with gestational diabetes during times of illness.
What You Can Do:
Adhere to a regular sleep schedule, ensuring you're getting at least eight hours of sleep each night and more during periods of illness. Consistency in sleep patterns helps regulate your body's internal clock, promoting better sleep quality and aiding in quicker recovery from illness.
Daytime Rest:
Allow yourself the grace to rest during the day if needed. Short, rejuvenating naps can provide a much-needed energy boost without disrupting your nighttime sleep.
Blood Sugar-Friendly Comfort Foods
Being ill can often steer your cravings towards comfort foods that soothe the soul. However, when managing gestational diabetes, the carbohydrate content of these comforting meals cannot be overlooked as it significantly impacts blood sugar levels.
The carbohydrate content in comfort foods can affect blood sugar levels. However, choosing low-glycemic index (GI) ingredients can result in slower digestion and absorption, causing a lesser and slower rise in blood sugar levels. Likewise, proteins and dietary fibers from non-starchy vegetables can contribute to slower glucose absorption, promoting better blood sugar control even when you're under the weather.
What You Can Do
Choose Low-GI Ingredients:
Opt for ingredients that have a low glycemic index as they cause a slower and lower rise in blood sugar. For instance, consider substituting traditional pasta with whole-grain or legume-based pasta when craving a bowl of chicken noodle soup.
Incorporate Lean Proteins:
Lean proteins are your allies in managing blood sugar levels. They provide essential amino acids for the body without contributing to high blood sugar levels.
Bone Broth Bonus: Like we mentioned earlier, bone broth can be a comforting, protein-rich option that can be a base for many soups and stews. The high protein content aids in blood sugar management, and it also offers additional minerals and nutrients that can support your immune system during sickness.
Load Up on Non-Starchy Vegetables:
Vegetables are nutrient powerhouses, providing essential vitamins, minerals, and dietary fiber without significantly affecting your blood sugar levels. Incorporate a variety of colorful, non-starchy vegetables in your soups, stews, or other comfort meals to nourish your body and keep blood sugar levels stable.
Homemade Soups and Stews:
Preparing homemade soups and stews grants you control over the ingredients ensuring they align with your gestational diabetes management plan. Plus, the process of cooking can be quite therapeutic!
Consult Nutrition Labels:
If opting for store-bought options, always read the nutrition labels to gauge the carbohydrate content and choose options that align with your blood sugar management goals.
Navigating Blood Sugar Fluctuations During Sickness
Despite your best efforts in making blood sugar-friendly food choices, sickness can throw a wrench in the finely tuned machinery of blood sugar control. Illnesses often bring about a state of physiological stress, and the resultant hormonal fluctuations can lead to elevated blood sugar levels. Here’s what you can do:
Monitoring and Recording:
Consistent Tracking: Keep a diligent track of your blood sugar levels as you normally would, or even more frequently if advised by your healthcare provider. Understanding the pattern of your blood sugar fluctuations during illness can provide valuable insights.
Journaling: Maintain a food and symptom diary to record what you eat and how you feel. This can be a helpful tool in identifying any correlations between certain foods, symptoms, and blood sugar levels.
Communication with Healthcare Professionals
It's prudent to have a conversation with your healthcare provider and registered dietitian ahead of time to plan for potential scenarios during illnesses. Discuss when they would like to be notified, and under what circumstances, especially if blood sugar levels are persistently elevated or significantly fluctuating. Having a plan regarding medication adjustments or knowing what safe over-the-counter medications can be used during illness can be immensely beneficial.
Reaching Out
Should you notice a persistent upward trend in blood sugar levels or if you encounter any concerns regarding managing your blood sugar while sick, don’t hesitate to contact your healthcare provider and registered dietitian. It's essential to have open communication lines, as they can provide additional advice or adjustments to your management plan to better navigate through this challenging period.
Medication Adjustments
During an illness, your blood sugar levels might not behave as they usually do, necessitating some temporary adjustments in your medication regimen. Your healthcare provider might suggest changes to better manage blood sugar levels during this time. It's crucial to follow their advice diligently and report back on the effectiveness of any adjustments made, ensuring your and your baby's safety and well-being throughout the illness episode.
Always Be Kind to Yourself
Managing gestational diabetes while ill can be taxing. During such times, practicing self-compassion is crucial. It's vital to acknowledge the effort you're putting in to manage your health amidst feeling unwell. Avoid self-criticism and embrace a stance of positive reinforcement to ease the journey.
Celebrate every step you're taking to maintain both your and your baby’s health. It's easy to fall into self-judgment when things don’t go as planned, but remember, you're doing your best in a challenging situation. Lean on your support network and keep open lines of communication with healthcare professionals who are there to assist you. Accepting help, embracing the learning curve, and treating oneself with kindness can significantly alleviate the mental load, reflecting positively on the efforts to manage gestational diabetes effectively.
With the right information, vigilant monitoring, and open communication with your healthcare team, you can navigate the rough waters of managing blood sugar levels during sickness, ensuring both your and your baby’s well-being are well taken care of.
Until next week Mamas! May you stay well and healthy!
Disclaimer: The information provided in this blog post is intended for general informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to replace or substitute professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or your health. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking it because of something you have read in this blog. GDMamas, LLC assumes no liability for inaccuracies, errors, or omissions in the information presented.
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