Am I at risk for

gestational 

diabetes?

What should I do if I have

gestational diabetes?

If your health care provider tells you that you

have gestational diabetes, you will need to

follow a treatment plan to keep the condition

under control. Most treatment plans include

knowing your blood sugar level, eating a

healthy diet, and getting regular physical

activity. Some women also take insulin as

part of their treatment plan.

More and more women with gestational

diabetes have healthy pregnancies and

healthy babies because they follow their

treatment plan and control their blood sugar.

Managing Gestational Diabetes: A

Patient’s Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy, a

booklet from the National Institute of Child

Health and Human Development (NICHD),

describes general ways to

stay healthy with gestational

diabetes. The booklet

explains what causes

gestational diabetes, what

having it means for you and

your baby, and what you can

do if you have it; the booklet

also gives contact information

for groups that can help you if you find out

you have it. 

To get your free copy of this booklet, or for

more information about NICHD research

topics, contact the NICHD Information

Resource Center at:

Phone: 1-800-370-2943 (TTY: 1-888-320-6942)

Fax: (301) 984-1473

Mail: P.O. Box 3006, Rockville, MD 20847 

E-mail: N I C H D I n f o r m a t i o n R e s o u r c e C e n t e r @ m a i l . n i h . g o v

Internet: http://www.nichd.nih.gov

* American Diabetes Association. (2004). Position statement:

Gestational Diabetes Mellitus. Diabetes Care, 7(Supp.1):

S88-S90.

NIH Pub. No. 00-4818

Updated June 2005

What is involved in 

getting tested?

Health care providers may use one of two

approaches* to test for gestational diabetes:

• One-step approach. After fasting (not eating or

drinking anything except water) for 4 to 8 hours,

a woman’s blood sugar level is measured before

and 2 hours after she drinks a certain amount of

a sugar drink. This type of test is called an oral

glucose tolerance test.

• Two-step approach. A health care provider

measures the blood sugar of a woman 1 hour

after she drinks a certain amount of a sugar

drink. Women whose blood sugar level is

normal after 1 hour probably do not have

gestational diabetes; those whose blood sugar

level is high after 1 hour then get an oral

glucose tolerance test to see if they have

gestational diabetes.

Why do some women get 

gestational diabetes?

Usually, the body breaks down much of the

food you eat into a type of sugar, called

glucose. Because glucose moves from the

stomach into the blood, some people use

the term blood sugar, instead of glucose.

Your body makes a hormone called insulin

that moves glucose out of the blood and into

the cells of the body. In women with

gestational diabetes, the glucose can’t get

into the cells, so the amount of glucose in

the blood gets higher and higher. This is

called high blood sugar or diabetes. 

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

National Institutes of Health

National Institute of Child Health and 

Human Development
What is 

gestational diabetes?

Gestational diabetes (pronounced jesstay-shun-ul die-uh-beet-eez) is a type of

diabetes, or high blood sugar, that only

pregnant women get. In fact, the word

gestational means pregnant. If a woman

gets high blood sugar when she’s

pregnant, but she never had high blood

sugar before, she has gestational

diabetes. Nearly 200,000* pregnant

women get the condition every year,

making it one of the top health concerns

related to pregnancy.

If not treated, gestational diabetes can

cause problems for mothers and babies.

Some of these problems can be serious. 

But there is some 

good news:

• Most of the time, gestational diabetes

goes away after the baby is born. The

changes in your body that cause

gestational diabetes normally occur only

when you are pregnant. After the baby is

born, your body goes back to normal

and the condition goes away.

• Gestational diabetes is treatable,

especially if you find out about it early in

your pregnancy. The best way to control

gestational diabetes is to find out you

have it early and start treatment quickly.

• Treating gestational diabetes greatly

lowers the baby’s chances of having

problems.

Should I get tested?

If you are at... Your health care provider will*...

High Risk Test you as soon as you know 

you are pregnant. If the first 

test is negative, he or she will

likely test you again when you

are between 24 and 28 weeks’

p r e g n a n t .

Average Risk Test you when you are 24 to

28 weeks’ pregnant.

Low Risk Probably not test you unless

you start to have problems.

Keep in mind that every pregnancy is different.

Even if you didn’t have gestational diabetes

when you were pregnant before, you might get it

during your current pregnancy. Or, if you had

gestational diabetes before, you may not get it

with this pregnancy. Follow your health care

provider’s advice about your risk level and

getting tested.

What if I don’t get treated 

for gestational diabetes?

Most women with gestational diabetes have

healthy pregnancies and healthy babies

because they control their condition. Without

treatment, these women are at risk for: high

blood pressure, preeclampsia (a sudden,

dangerous increase in blood pressure), and

fetal death during the last 4 to 8 weeks of

pregnancy. These women may also have very

large babies. Some women need surgery to

deliver their bigger babies, which can increase

the risk of infection and prolong recovery time. 

As babies, children whose mothers had

gestational diabetes are at higher risk for

breathing problems. As they get older, these

children are also at higher risk for obesity,

abnormal glucose tolerance, and diabetes. 

These women and their children also have a

higher lifetime risk for type 2 diabetes. It may

be possible to prevent type 2 diabetes through

lifestyle changes. Talk to your health care

provider about diabetes and risk from

gestational diabetes.

How do I know if I’m at risk?

Answer the questions below to learn your risk level* for gestational diabetes.

Yes No

1. Are you a member of a high-risk ethnic group (Hispanic, African American, 

Native American, or Pacific Islander)? ❍ ❍

2. Are you overweight or very overweight? ❍ ❍

3. Are you related to anyone who has diabetes now or had diabetes in their lifetime? ❍ ❍

4. Are you older than 25? ❍ ❍

5. Did you have gestational diabetes with a past pregnancy? ❍ ❍

6. Have you had a stillbirth or a very large baby with a past pregnancy? ❍ ❍

7. Do you have a history of abnormal glucose tolerance? ❍ ❍

If you answered YES to TWO or more of these questions, you are at HIGH RISK for gestational diabetes.

If you answered YES to ONLY ONE of these questions, you are at AVERAGE RISK for gestational diabetes.

If you answered NO to ALL of these questions, you are at LOW RISK for gestational diabetes.