uae

by razia iqbal
(UAE)

Q: I am Razia and I am pregnat in 8 month and 10 days. My problem is high sugar -- I tested my blood 10 times, but mu sugar stays the same -- 8.00 point. I am also on a diet, but sugar is still high. What can I do?

N: Hi Razia, I first want you to know that it is normal for pregnant women to have a high blood sugar level. This occurs in 10 to 20% of pregnancies. The reason for these high levels of sugar is that the blood volume increases dramatically and the pancreas is not able to produce enough insulin for the body in a short period of time.

So what you can do is to reduce the amount of sugar you take and the time sugar is absorbed by your digestive system and enters the blood.

To reduce the amount of sugar, avoid any sweet foods. It would help to read the information about ingredients in any food you buy, because even in bread, cereals and most foods which are not sweet, such as ketchup or mustard, there can be some sugar.
Next, eat whole fruit instead of juice. A whole fruit has fiber which will slow the absorption of sugar, so the pancreas will not be overloaded.
Use as much vegetables as you can. Their fiber also increase the time of sugar absorption and they contain many vitamins.
Drink water instead of juices.

Avoid fats, as they are making the insulin in the blood less effective. It is preferable to eat fish and vegetable or olive oil, instead of meat and butter.

Include physical exercises and conscious breathing in your daily routine. You can integrate simple yoga exercises, climbng stairs or walking in your daily life.

Try to add snacks to your day -- you can have breakfast, morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, dinner, bedtime snack. This will balance your feeling of hunger and you will be able to choose more carefully what you eat. Drink plenty of water, fresh vegetables and fruit, beans and fish, oatmeal and plain yogurt.

Also, be aware that to change your level of sugar takes time. Even if for a long time, the sugar level is not influenced, it is a good idea to make exercises, to walk in the open, to make breathing exercises. Doing yoga and calming your mind will slow your metabolism and make it easier for the pancreas to produce enough insulin to balance the sugar in your blood.