Mothers with gestational diabetes always ask their doctors these questions when they come to the hospital for checkups – quite a few “Can gestational diabetes be passed on to my child?” “How should I ensure adequate nutrition during pregnancy if I have diabetes?” “What kind of harm will gestational diabetes cause to the pregnant woman and her child?” This is the most concerned questions of all diabetic mothers during pregnancy, so now follow the footsteps of Dr. Yudao, let us unveil the answers to these three questions one by one. Can diabetes be passed on to children? First of all, we need to clarify a concept, diabetes is a group of metabolic diseases characterized by high blood sugar. Diabetes itself is not hereditary; it is the susceptibility to diabetes that is hereditary. In other words, diabetes is only genetically predisposed, but not 100% heritable. Children of diabetics are just more prone to diabetes than ordinary people, but as long as you avoid the factors and environment that make diabetes possible, you can avoid developing the disease. So you can rest assured, as long as you come to the hospital for regular checkups during pregnancy and control your diet, and follow the doctor’s instructions for insulin injections when necessary, you can have a healthy baby. When your child is growing up, you should cultivate a healthy lifestyle for your child, such as good diet control, eat more vegetables and fruits, drink less sugary carbonated beverages and fried foods, and develop the habit of exercising to improve your immune system. If you suffer from colds and other inflammatory diseases, you should actively come to the hospital for treatment. How to ensure adequate nutrition during pregnancy? We all know that one of the most important aspects of diabetes treatment is self-monitoring and dietary control. So how should we eat during pregnancy to control blood glucose and at the same time eat a nutritious diet? First of all, the main food should be small meals, balanced diet, do not overeat. Generally pregnant women should eat five or six meals a day, mainly limiting carbohydrates with high sugar content such as rice and noodles. Then it is necessary to ensure an adequate supply of protein, especially to eat more soy foods, which can increase the plant protein. Of course the supply of fat should also be moderate, to maintain the basic daily calories is good. You should also eat more fresh vegetables and fruits to replenish vitamins and minerals. Eat a clean diet and watch out for fats and salt intake. What are the risks of diabetes to the mother and fetus? First of all, gestational diabetes is prone to cause miscarriage in pregnant women, and the incidence of miscarriage is as high as 15% to 30%. It also tends to lead to ketoacidosis, increased incidence of gestational hypertension and cardiovascular system diseases. At the same time, due to the mother’s high blood sugar, the fetus is in a long-term high blood sugar environment, which promotes the synthesis of fat and protein, and is prone to overdevelopment into a huge child. This increases the risk of difficult labor for the mother, and is prone to causing birth canal injury and postpartum hemorrhage. Not only that, a fetus under such a high blood sugar environment for a long period of time is prone to developmental disorders, such as fetal growth restriction, fetal distress, and even fetal malformations. The baby can also suffer from life-threatening hypoglycemia caused by hyperinsulinemia after birth. Gestational diabetes is not a scary disease, as long as we are regular in our labor and delivery tests, learn to self-monitor and control our diet, and do proper exercise, follow the doctor’s instructions to get the relevant treatment and insulin injections, we will be able to get through this period safely and smoothly and give birth to a healthy baby.