How does gestational diabetes differ from Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes?

Gestational diabetes happens in a woman who develops diabetes during pregnancy. Some women have more than one pregnancy affected by diabetes that disappears after the pregnancy ends. About half of women with gestational diabetes will develop Type 2 diabetes later.

If not controlled, gestational diabetes can cause the baby to grow extra large and lead to problems with delivery for the mother and the baby. Gestational diabetes might be controlled with diet and exercise, or it might take insulin as well as diet and exercise to get control.

Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes often are present before a woman gets pregnant. If not controlled before and during pregnancy, Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes can cause the baby to have birth defects and cause the mother to have problems (or her problems to worsen if they are already present), such as high blood pressure, kidney disease, nerve damage, heart disease, or blindness. Type 1 diabetes must be controlled with a balance of diet, exercise, and insulin. Type 2 diabetes might be controlled with diet and exercise, or it might take diabetes pills or insulin or both as well as diet and exercise to get control.

Will my baby have diabetes?

Babies born to mothers with diabetes do not come into the world with diabetes. However, if the mother's diabetes was not controlled during pregnancy, the baby can very quickly develop low blood sugar after birth and must be watched very closely until his or her body adjusts the amount of insulin it makes.

Extra large babies are more likely to become obese and to develop Type 2 diabetes later in life. They especially need to develop healthy eating and regular exercise habits as they grow up to lessen the chance of obesity and Type 2 diabetes.

If the father of the developing baby has diabetes, does his diabetes affect the pregnancy?

Diabetes in the father does not affect the developing baby during pregnancy. However, depending on the type of diabetes the father has, the baby might have a greater chance of developing diabetes later in life.

Text courtesy: www.cdc.gov