My Diabetes and Pregnancy Menu – My Typical Days

When I had to deal with diabetes and pregnancy with the goal of tight blood sugar control, I found I had an easier time when I ate the same basic things at regular times.  You will find an example menu below of my typical day.

Keep in mind we are all different.  I have had type 2 diabetes since my early 20′s and got pregnant in my late 30′s.  Many factors influence how diabetes affects your life, so be sure to work with your doctor and a dietician.  Remember, I am not a health care professional…just another mom trying to point you in the right direction.

In my own personal case, I had best results if I had 30 g of carb per meal and 15 g of carb per snack.  This is considered pretty strict, but that is how my body works.  You may be able to (or may have to) eat more carbs, but this gives you an idea of what worked for me.  I only tracked carbs.  Your doctor may ask you to track other nutritional data.

A common recommendation is 15 g of carb at breakfast, 45 g of carb with lunch and dinner, and 15-30 g of carb per snack.  This could be a possible preexisting diabetes and pregnancy menu or a gestational diabetes menu.

Example Diabetes and Pregnancy Menu

Breakfast – 15-30 carbs

• 2 eggs
• toast (or small tortilla or corn tortilla)

Depending on the carb counts, this usually meant 1-2 pieces of toast, 1 small tortilla or 1-2 corn tortillas.  I would get creative by making little burritos or tacos and I would often top it with lots of hot sauce or tons of freshly made salsa and some avocado.

Because my blood sugar levels were so reactive, I was told not to eat until after 11:00 a.m.  I also avoided milk, yogurt, and fruit at breakfast because they would make my levels skyrocket.

Lunch – 30 carbs

• Sandwich or toasted bread/roll or hefty soup
• a garden salad
• a serving of milk or yogurt

I would try to find bread that was around 15 carbs per slice or less.  If I put croutons or other starchy things on my salad, I would include that in the carb count.  I would try to make a nice big salad full of fresh veggies with a tasty dressing.  Sometimes I included avocado or even sunflower seeds or walnuts in my sandwich or on my salad.

Remember, deli meats are not recommended during pregnancy unless they are served steaming hot.  I usually would cook turkey or chicken and freeze small portions of the meat so I could make sandwiches out of it.  I would also use the meat to top my salad.

Dinner – 30 carbs

• Salad and a protein or a stir fry
• toasted bread/roll or a small portion of a carby side dish
• a serving of milk or yogurt

My protein was either roasted/steamed fish, a steak, or roasted chicken.  A carby side dish would be corn, carrots, peas, rice, noodles, amaranth, quinoa, or whatever as long as my meal came in around 30 carbs.  I found this meant very little rice or noodles so I was always experimenting with veggies so that I could eat more.

My wok is probably as old as my son.  I have made many a things in her.  I love Panda Express Kung Pao sauce which they sell in their restaurants.  Not only is it tasty, but it has much less carbs than you would expect.

Snacks – 15 g carbs

• Fruit
• cheese or nuts or nut butter

I used my snack time as my time to enjoy fresh fruits.

Beverages

Drink plenty of fluids and keep hydrated

More

I ate every 2-3 hours.

i always made sure I paired carb with a protein.

I made sure no more than 10 hours passed between my bedtime snack and my morning blood sugar check.

Because maintaining tight control brings a greater risk of of blood sugar lows, I made sure to carry extra snacks and checked my blood sugar levels regularly.  I also carried fast-acting  carb/sugar such as glucose tabs, glucose gel and even candy.  When I was too nauseous to hold food down and my blood sugar levels were low, I would rub a small amount of glucose gel (or even cake decorating gel if I couldn’t get it) and rub it into my gums.

I carried my insulated snack bag everywhere.  Sometimes a 5-minute trip to the store ended up turning into a couple hours.  You don’t want to get stuck alone in your car with your blood sugar levels dropping and no extra food.

Share what worked for you!

Please comment on what worked for you, tips, or what foods were good/bad to you.
_{Photo: Maryjeanne.li/cropped/ CC-BY-SA-3.0}

Ingredients

• Best ingredients are complex carbs, whole grains and fresh fruits and veggies.

Method