Gestational diabetes - good and bad foods

[Quenelle]

I was borderline with GD at the end of my last pregnancy and my MW informs me I will almost certainly have it again this time so I should adjust my diet from the start.

Can anyone point me in the direction of a handy, straightforward list of good and bad foods? I know wholewheat carbs = good and refined carbs = bad, also plenty of protein = good.

I also need some good ideas for snacks. I'm still at the must-eat-right-now-or-I-may-puke stage. The MW said bananas aren't good, and nor are ginger nuts . God knows what she'd say about the apple turnovers I've been mainlining...

Nairns ginger oat cakes are fab for a ginger snap substitute. They also do different flavours.

Bananas are not too bad if they're on the green side of yellow. The more ripe they get the more sugary they get.

I don't have a list handy, have one at home I think but just wanted to reassure you about ginger biscuits.

oat cakes here Found them mostly in Sainsburys, can't remember if Tescos do them.

I have GD and I'm on insulin now at 18+4 (been on it for about 4 weeks), some is trial and error as in what is bad for you might not be so bad for someone else and vise versa. Cheese is a good snack, if you eat meat then you could wrap cheese in a piece of ham or similar. I've found that cereal is bad for me so I avoid it but I'm on a set amount of carbs at each meal at the moment so they can see when my insulin needs adjusting easier.

Gherkins seems to be ok, again with cheese for me! I've not really been snacking much at all as I'm to worried about high numbers but they said to avoid snacking too much anyway.

If it helps I was borderline in my first pg, but din't get it in my second, so it's not inevitable.

Why not get a book on low GI or diabetic diets for ideas?

Thanks everyone for replying so quickly.

GuillotinedMaryLacey that is good news about the ginger biscuits. I will seek out ginger oat cakes.

CheeseandGherkins so you developed GD at around 14 weeks? I didn't realise it could happen that early, for me it wasn't found until around 36 weeks so I didn't have to put up with it for long. I hope the rest of your pregnancy is as trouble-free as it can be.

WhereTheWildThingsWere (hello camping type ) it is reassuring to know I may not get it again. I'll read a bit more about it when I have the time, I just wanted a good/bad list to give to the housekeeper DH for when he's planning meals.

Hi I've been discharged from diabetic clinic now but was given a good booklet which diabetes uk publish.

I was told I had it at 38 weeks last time, although I disputed that. Now am 29 weeks on round 2 and have just passed my GTT so it's not inevitable. Good luck :)

Yes, I was started on testing at 13 weeks and a few days later I was put onto insulin, one of the reasons they think I had it last time too. Sadly last time our daughter died at 37 weeks and was stillborn a few days later, this was in December so they're taking very good care of me now.

How many weeks are you at the moment? It's carbs that equate to sugar I was told so obviously cut down on the processed sugar, like chocolate and sweets etc but it's also things like pasta, potatoes, bread etc for me that are had in moderation or mixed with other foods. I'm a vegetarian as well so meat isn't an option for me.

Not had GD but am married to a type 1 diabetic so used to looking at carb content and how fast they act.

It would be good to lower all carbs - in the end carbs = sugar, whatever sort of carbs they are. That said, slower acting is better. On the whole less refined = slower and more refined = faster but it also depends on the carb type. Weetabix for instance is wholewheat but the carbohydrate acts really fast - way faster than chocolate! (I guess because it is so shredded up, so fast absorbed by the body). Porridge or sugar-free-not-too-fruity muesli will act much more slowly. Pasta is high in carbs, but white pasta actually often acts slower than say brown rice.

Adding fat to a meal slows down the rate of absorption of carbohydrate too. So potato salad with mayonnaise is absorbed slower than the plain potatoes on their own.

Nuts or seeds would make a good snack as they are mainly protein/good fat rather than carbs. Pulses are good as they are low carbohydrate and what there is is absorbed very slowly. So swap mashed potato for butterbean mash, for instance.

This website has a good tool for looking at both the overall carbohydrate content per portion and the glycaemic index (i.e. how fast it is absorbed by the body....on a 0-100 scale where 100 is pure glucose). www.glycemicindex.com/

Diabetes UK should also have some ideas.

Quakers oat bars, absolutely lived on them when pregnant, scrambled eggs really good for breakfast, cheese, whole grain pasta, lots of protein and veg, the odd little bit of choc is even ok, Good luck

CheeseandGherkins I am very sorry about your daughter. My very best wishes to you for this pregnancy.

I am 12 weeks on Monday so early days. The MW didn't pick anything up from the urine sample I did on Monday so I guess I'm ok at the moment.

Thanks sleepevader and pootlebug I will check out the Diabetes UK and glycemicindex websites. I'm very fond of lentils and beans so it would be no hardship to eat more of them.