Gestational Diabetes Support Thread 2018

[Babney]

The dreaded diet is back.

Second pregnancy & so I've got months ahead.

Not sure I can handle eggs every morning for breakfast.

The lack of variety is one of the worst things.

I'm hoping others with gestational diabetes can share meal & snack ideas here.

Here's a sample of what I would eat now everyday.

Breakfast : 2 eggs on Burgen soya & linseed bread.

Mid morning snack : babybel & 0% actimel

Lunch: more Burgen bread, 2 slices with cheese, ham/chicken slices with tomato & mayo

Afternoon snack: berries with natural or Greek yougurt

Dinner: some kind of meat, with veg & tiny amount if carbs be that a half baked potato or small amount of brown pasta or rice.

Bedtime snack: 2 ryvita or 2 rice cakes with lots of peanut butter & an apple.

I might swap snacks & lunches around but this is pretty much what I eat every day.

I feel sometimes I'm eating my own weight in cheese & peanut butter.

I'm not beating myself up this time round if my scores are slightly higher. Here in Ireland you have to score 7 & under an hour after meals.

I grabbed a sausage roll on the run yesterday & scored 6.9 after an hour. I was doing a bit of walking so that could have helped with score.

I miss having milk, I can't remember what I paired it with last time.

I also need to buy some nuts to snack on & I found certain crumpets last time were fine.

Gestationaldiabetes.co.uk seems to be the best site for information out there.

Some of the posts online I have read have been crazy, suggesting foods that are high in sugar just because they are fruits.

Welcome any advice you can offer & your sample daily meal ideas.

[Babney]

BUMP!

[Ninjamilo]

Can't really offer any advice as it's all new to me - was diagnosed last week at 29 weeks, first baby.

I'm gutted to be honest, although everything was fairly plain sailing so I guess there had to be a curveball somewhere!

I'm really struggling, but I think that's more because I see my home birth plans slipping away more than anything else.

The food is boring....and food I don't particularly like as well.

I've never liked cheese but babybels are my new best friend! I've always eaten a lot of fruit which I now need to cut down, ill count down the days I think to make me feel better!

[Babney]

At least eat berries with natural yogurt.

Tonight I'm treating myself to sugar free jelly & cream. I just need something sweet.

I also found sugar free biscuits in Aldi, they are Gullon sugar free Maria biscuits, I had 2 of them earlier & only tested 5.2 after an hour. Hope I'm not kidding myself with them.

[Ninjamilo]

Berries and kiwi with yoghurt is my staple breakfast daily 😀

I'll have to have a look in Aldi!

Bought some nature valley protein bars earlier as they're supposed to be well tolerated, at least they may give me a bit of a chocolate kick, fingers crossed!

Do you find yourself feeling more hungry with the limited carbs? I'm not sure if it's that or in my head because I know my diet is limited now 🙁

[Babney]

I feel starving all the time.

It's strange because I'm having more snacks than I would have had.

I think it must be a mental thing too, knowing you can't really have what you want.

Must look at protein bars.

By the way so gutted I can't even have a limited edition grand big mac! So not fair!

[Ninjamilo]

Apparently they're sold out everywhere, so that should soften the blow!

Not impressed with the Nature Valley protein bars 🤢

Also realised my job on the road is a nightmare now...lunch was 3 bits of chicken from KFC, I used to live KFC, but i had to force it down in the end! Services had nothing else I could eat 😢

[switswoo81]

Only diagnosed 2 weeks ago. Having porridge or shredded wheat for breakfast. That’s my only milk all day. Snacks are cheese sticks- or I got these handy nut tubes in Lidl for 49c have 12g in carbohydrates so that’s fine for a snack. The fruit is killing me though was craving it all pregnancy.
Also in Ireland. Had a wedding at the weekend and the dinner ( no desert ) had it at 8.5

[PenguinsAndPolarBears]

Your carbs sound very limited! I really struggled last pregnancy because I didn't eat enough carbs (which makes you hungry, which makes you crave sugar ...) but this time round the dietician has said I can have more and it's so much easier. I've never tried Burgen bread - what is it? I've been avoiding bread as much as possible because the amounts I can have are so small compared to other carbs and don't fill me up.

Also, I thought milk was fine! I've been drinking loads (and it definitely has less carbs than peanut butter). Milky drinks with artificial sweetener are my go-to treats at the moment. It's weird how the advice seems to vary so much between countries (and even between hospitals in my case). So confusing!

[Babney]

I have a wedding too soon in next few months, really annoying having this & not being able to just eat normally.
8.5 isn't too bad if it's a one off thing. Crap not being able to have dessert though!

Burgen soya & linseed bread is just a sliced pan bread, it makes you feel like you are eating normal bread (kinda) while you have GD. My numbers have been brilliant with it, I usually put cheese & a meat with mayo on it for lunch & have it with eggs in the morning.

I don't know how you eat on the road. I'm going away for weekend soon & I already plan on bringing snacks that I can eat with me. A jar of peanut butter with corn or rice cakes & nuts.

One of the most frustrating things is that people don't realise there are certain (many) things you just can't eat. I end up coming across as almost being fussy for the sake of it, (not because I'm concerned about my unborn child! )

By the way I chanced a Birds Eye Potato waffle the other day & got a 4.2! Any little thing helps.

If there's anything you find (especially treats!) & get a hood score please post here.