Are you allowed to breastfeed during a glucose tolerance test?

[mrsgboring]

I had gestational diabetes (only borderline, last few weeks of pregnancy) and in our area this means they want you to do a GTT at six weeks postnatal.

If I do this, would I be allowed to breastfeed during the test? I'm assuming since you're not even allowed to walk around for fear of skewing the result that breastfeeding would be a no-no.

Am thinking of refusing anyway, since NICE guidelines say it's unnecessary, but if I can't feed during the test (and it would be a three hour GTT) that would finally make up my mind.

yes AFAIK- cantsleepwontsleep had gtt this time last year, she was still bf her dd

Thanks EachPeach. I'm quite surprised then, that that's the case. My friend who's diabetic said that she could eat what she wanted during breastfeeding because BF zaps the sugar so effectively.

I have had the test several times and have never been told not to walk around. I breastfed loads duting at least a couple of the tests. Was never told not too.

I refused (well, didn't refuse exactly, just didn't remind them) to do the six week postnatal test. I reckoned I am NOT fasting for twelve hours at six weeks postnatal with a breastfeeding baby as I remembered from the first baby how hungry I got.

When I did the original GTT they would have been happy for me to walk around and do whatever I wanted, but because I'd heard that other people had been told they had to sit quietly I'd prepared for that and brought a book. As it turned out I only just failed so in the (at present entirely hypothetical) situation that I have a third baby and hence another GTT I would definitely go out for a walk as that would mean I'd probably pass (I've stll got my blood sugar monitor, so I could keep a track of my diet and blood sugar (which was easily controlled) anyway, just avoid the hassle)

Hi PortAndLemon. I can sympathise. I actually passed my GTT and my 2 hour post prandial, but they later decided my baby looked fat in the womb and that I was probably diabetic after all, and the passes were converted to fails Either way I was pretty much borderline, but now have the gestational diabetes label over my head, which I feel sad and guilty over.

According to various Internet sources, you aren't meant to exercise at all during a GTT.

Think I'm going to refuse anyway. Have checked my blood sugars occasionally and they're always good. It's a massive hassle, plus I can just see me turning up having checked it was okay to BF and them saying no, we don't allow that here (hosp. does nothing in a standard way as far as GD is concerned.) and stuck starving with a starving baby for three hours.

Personally (and this is just me) I would refuse the test anyway if you are not concerned and have no other diabetes risks. Or you could take it at a later stage.

But I'm not sure what the logic would be in preventing you feeding during the test, because assuming you fed right before (which is what most people would logically do, in order to get your baby through the 3 hours) your body would be producing milk to fill up your boobs all the way through the test regardless of whether the baby was actually draining it that second or not, iyswim?

I think it would be the fact that you were lactating that would skew the test, rather than the fact that you were bfing that very instant. But not an expert so I may be wrong.

btw I had a GTT during pregnancy and had no idea you weren't supposed to exercise - I walked up a huge hill to a nearby park and lay down under a tree as I felt so faint and weird!

I would refuse the test. I've had one GTT, and it made me feel really really rough (and I passed).

(Obviously, the GD means you are at a high risk for diabetes long term, and you need to take steps to reduce that risk.)

Thanks all. Deffo going to refuse. TYV, you are quite right about the body making milk all the time, though I think the insulin response is very sensitive and quick and therefore may locally be affected by letdown, say.