According to the definition of the WHO (World Health Organization), gestational diabetes, also “pregnancy diabetes”, is a disorder of carbohydrate tolerance leading to hyperglycemia of varying severity, beginning or diagnosed for the first time during pregnancy. pregnancy.

Thus, as with other diabetes, gestational diabetes is a disorder in the regulation of blood sugar (blood sugar level) causing excess glucose in the blood (chronic hyperglycemia).

This article aims to guide pregnant women with gestational diabetes on their diet. But it does not in any way replace the sound advice of a doctor to draw up a diet plan adapted to the medical history.

“In 90% of cases, gestational diabetes is linked to a dietary imbalance”, indicates Dr Lévy-Dutel, endocrinologist-gynecologist, at the Georges Pompidou European Hospital. The recommended diet for diabetes during pregnancy is therefore simply to rebalance the diet in quality and quantity without initiating any restrictive diet. Beware of preconceived ideas: there is no question of eliminating starches and fruits on the pretext that they contain sugar.

Before making big changes in your diet, here are the golden rules of a balanced diet, very simple to put in place to continue to please yourself while controlling your blood sugar:

3 meals a day 

Do not skip any meals and always eat breakfast, even if you eat it late in the morning with: a grain product (bread, cereals, oatmeal), fruit and dairy products

Meat, fish, eggs 

For lunch and dinner, be sure to eat a source of protein (meat, fish, eggs, ham or chicken breast)

starchy 

Consume a portion of starchy foods per meal and prefer starchy foods with a low Glycemic Index (those that increase blood sugar slightly): whole-grain or bran bread, German black bread, whole or whole-grain pasta, basmati rice, split peas, lentils, chickpeas, dried beans, etc.

On the other hand, avoid white bread, wholemeal bread and potatoes which increase blood sugar dramatically.

Vegetables 

For lunch and dinner, always eat vegetables in at least the same amount as starchy foods. Ideally, make sure you always have at least one serving of raw vegetables per day: green salad, grated carrot, cucumber, white cabbage, tomatoes, etc.

To fill up on vitamins, minerals, antioxidants but also fiber while indulging yourself, consider vegetable pies, woks, pan-fried foods, soups, vegetable juices, etc.

Fruits 

Be satisfied with three fruits a day, making sure to choose fruits with a low GI that you will eat preferably raw to benefit from all its nutritional benefits. If you choose the fruit juice version, even squeeze your fruit and do not delay to drink your homemade drink! The fruit juices of large surfaces, whatever they are, do not have real nutritional interests, in terms of vitamins in particular. You can also opt for compotes, but again, prefer the homemade versions which require very little preparation time. Turn off the heat as soon as the fruit is cooked and always taste before adding sugar: the fructose in the fruit is often sufficient on its own!

To help you choose fruits that do little to increase blood sugar, here is a non-exhaustive list of fruits with a low GI: apricot, almond, banana still yellow (without stain on the skin), blackcurrant, cherry, clementine, strawberry, raspberry, passion fruit, pomegranate, currant, tangerine, blackberry, blueberry, nectarine, hazelnut, walnut, orange, grapefruit, peach, pear, apple, plum, rhubarb.

Just avoid papaya, ripe bananas (with stains on the skin) and guava which raises blood sugar too much.

Dairy products 

Dairy products include yogurts, fromage blanc, faisselle and small Swiss. Consume one with each meal and prefer it without added sugars but not necessarily at 0% because the caloric difference on the finished product is small.

That said, you can very well add vanilla seeds, cinnamon or cut your fresh fruit in your dairy to make a gourmet dessert. And why not mix it with some ice cubes and some fresh fruit to make a delicious drink?

Fat 

Allow yourself 10 g of butter in the morning and the equivalent of a teaspoon of oil for lunch and dinner.

Grill meats and fish as much as possible in a non-stick pan. If necessary, lightly oil it with absorbent paper.

Collation 

If 3 meals a day are not enough and you notice that you are hungry between meals (cravings) on a regular basis, increase the quantity of vegetables at the previous meal by adding, for example, a starter of raw vegetables and if that is not enough, put set up a snack systematically with about ten almonds and a dairy product for example

Sweet products 

If foods that are said to be high in sugar such as starches and fruits are not to be eliminated from your diet, sugar as such will be to be avoided, or at least to be limited because it clearly increases blood sugar levels, and this, whatever the quantity consumed. Thus, replace white sugar and brown sugar with sweeteners, or even better with natural sweeteners that do little to increase your blood sugar: xylitol (birch sugar), agave syrup or fructose for example. You will find it in the organic department of your supermarket or in an organic store.

And if you are greedy, cut out refined sugars that greatly increase blood sugar: cookies, chocolate bars, etc. But allow yourself a little reasonable pleasure every day: 2 squares of chocolate with 70% cocoa, jam without added sugar (organic section) in the morning or a piece of cheese per day for example.

To go further in the management of blood sugar through food, one concept is fundamental: the Glycemic Index (GI).

The Glycemic Index of a food is its ability to increase glycemia (blood sugar level) compared to a reference value, glucose.

The higher the Glycemic Index (GI) of a food, the more it increases blood sugar significantly. The reverse is true for foods with a low GI. The goal, if you have gestational diabetes, is to eat low or medium GI foods, or at least avoid high GI foods that raise your blood sugar too severely.

To help you make the best food choices, here is a list of everyday foods that have a high GI, and their low GI replacement foods:

The choice of starchy foods 

The choice of vegetables

There are actually very few vegetables that have a significant impact on blood sugar: cooked carrots, cooked beets, cooked celery and cooked turnip, squash (pumpkin, pumpkin, pumpkin).

All other vegetables can be eaten at will at each meal: artichoke, eggplant, asparagus, avocado, chard, raw beet, broccoli, raw carrot, raw celery, cabbage, cucumber, zucchini, watercress, spinach, fennel, beans, turnip raw, onion, fresh peas, leek, snow peas, pepper, radish, salad, tomato.

The choice of fruits

Only a few fruits significantly increase blood sugar. This is the case of ripe bananas (with a stain on the skin), dates, guava, melon, papaya, watermelon.

All other fruits increase:

• very little blood sugar: apricot, almond, banana still yellow (without stain on the skin), blackcurrant, cherry, clementine, strawberry, raspberry, passion fruit, pomegranate, currant, tangerine, blackberry, blueberry, nectarine, hazelnut, walnut , orange, grapefruit, peach, pear, apple, plum, rhubarb
• moderate blood sugar levels: persimmon, kiwi, lychee, mango

The choice of sweeteners

White and brown sugar, as well as honey, are carbohydrates that boost blood sugar levels regardless of the amount consumed. Ideally, they should be replaced by natural sweetening products with a low GI (in organic stores or in supermarkets in the organic department):

• of syrup of agave
• fructose
• birch sugar (xylitol)
• coconut sugar
• of the stevia

Chemical sweeteners of the aspartame type may also optionally be used.

Breakfast

• Hot drink: infusion, coffee or tea (possibly decaffeinated or decaffeinated)
• 60 g low or medium GI bread * or 40 g oatmeal
• 10 g butter
• Optional: 2 tbsp. to c. jam without added sugar
• 1 dairy: milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, faisselle, petits-suisse
• 1 low GI fruit **

Snack (optional):

• 1 low GI fruit **
• 10-15 almonds

Lunch:

• Starter of raw vegetables
• Dressing (lemon or vinegar, salt, pepper, 1 tbsp of a mixture of olive oil and oil rich in Omega-3 (perilla, camellia, nigella, hemp, walnuts, rapeseed, soybean), optional: mustard )
• Proteins: meat, fish or eggs (2)
• Vegetables cooked at will
• Low or medium GI starches (100 to 150 g cooked peas) ***
• 1 dairy: milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, faisselle, petits-suisse

Snack (optional):

• 1 low GI fruit **
• 10-15 almonds

Dinner

• Starter of raw vegetables
• Dressing (lemon or vinegar, salt, pepper, 1 tbsp of a mixture of olive oil and oil rich in Omega-3 (perilla, camellia, nigella, hemp, walnuts, rapeseed, soybean), optional: mustard )
• Proteins: meat, fish or eggs (2)
• Vegetables cooked at will
• Low or medium GI bread * (quantity to adapt according to your appetite)
• 1 dairy: milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, faisselle, petits-suisse

Cheese: add twice a week, on average, a portion of cheese (2 g) to pasteurized milk

* Low or medium GI bread: integral bread, German Pumpernickel black bread, bran bread, Wasas Fibers

** Fruits with low GI: apricot, almond, banana still yellow (without spots on the skin), blackcurrant, cherry, clementine, strawberry, raspberry, passion fruit, pomegranate, currant, tangerine, blackberry, blueberry, nectarine, hazelnut , walnut, orange, grapefruit, peach, pear, apple, plum, rhubarb

*** Low or medium GI starches: quinoa, lentils, chickpeas, split peas, white beans, red beans, basmati rice, spaghetti cooked al’dente, whole or whole pasta.