DiabetesDiabetes mellitus, SugarDiabetes is a condition in which blood glucose stays too high, either because the body makes too little insulin or because it has stopped responding to it. Pakistan has one of the highest rates in the world, and a large share of people with it do not yet know.
Gestational diabetes
Also known as GDM, Diabetes in pregnancy
Diabetes that appears during pregnancy in a woman who did not have it before. It usually resolves after delivery but raises the risk of type 2 diabetes later.
Pregnancy hormones make the body more resistant to . Most women's pancreas compensates; when it cannot, blood sugar rises and gestational diabetes is diagnosed.
It usually causes no symptoms, which is why it is screened for rather than waited for, normally with an between 24 and 28 weeks.
Why it is treated carefully
- A larger baby, making delivery more difficult
- Low blood sugar in the baby immediately after birth
- Higher chance of pre-eclampsia and of caesarean delivery
Related terms
- Oral glucose tolerance testOGTT, Glucose tolerance testA test where you drink a measured sugary solution and have your blood sugar checked two hours later, to see how well your body clears it.
- Insulin resistanceWhen the body's cells stop responding properly to insulin, so the pancreas must make more and more of it to keep blood sugar normal.
- PrediabetesBorderline diabetes, Impaired glucose toleranceBlood sugar that is higher than normal but not yet high enough to be called diabetes. It usually causes no symptoms at all, and it can often be reversed.