We all know that too much sugar is not good for us, and this is especially true during pregnancy. Foods that are high in sugar and contain few other nutrients are poor choices for the number of calories consumed. During pregnancy, women need to eat only about 300 extra calories per day, so to get the most nutrition out of those calories, it is best to avoid foods high in sugar. But what about the cravings for those oh-so-bad foods? (Ice cream and pickles in the middle of the night?) And why is sugar such a big deal during pregnancy anyway?
The most significant risk in eating too much sugar during pregnancy is developing gestational diabetes. According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA), gestational diabetes affects about 4 percent of all pregnant women—about 135,000 cases of gestational diabetes in the United States each year. Most women with gestational diabetes don’t remain diabetic after the baby is born. But once a woman has had it, she is at higher risk for getting it again during a future pregnancy and for becoming diabetic later in life, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). Other problems that may occur include preeclampsia, which is a serious medical condition affecting all organs of the body. It may require that the baby be delivered early, and severe preeclampsia can lead to seizures, kidney, or liver problems.
Gestational diabetes develops when the body is not able to make and use all the insulin it needs for pregnancy. During digestion, most food is broken down into a type of sugar called glucose. With the help of insulin, glucose provides energy for the cells of the body. During pregnancy, hormones make it harder for a woman’s body to use insulin, so the pancreas needs to produce more of it. When a woman’s pancreas can’t keep up with the insulin demand and her blood glucose levels get too high, the result is gestational diabetes.
Studies also confirm that too much sugar not only risks the development of gestational diabetes, but it can also cause big babies—increasing the likelihood of a C-section for some women. Even if gestational diabetes does not develop, higher blood sugar levels are not uncommon during pregnancy. According to ACOG, macrosomia (a very large baby) occurs when the mother’s blood sugar level is high throughout pregnancy. This allows too much sugar to go to the baby and can cause the baby to grow excessively large. If the baby is too large, delivery can be difficult, including problems delivering the baby’s shoulders and an increased risk of caesarean birth.
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