Passed GD Test but just barely

[sordidvolition]

I barely passed the three hour. My fasting number was high but all my other draws are good. Doc is just checking sugar level at every visit. She hasn't recommended any diet changes or further monitoring.

[txngrl31]

I'm a little confused to why they asked you to "watch" your carb and sugar intake when you passed the 1 hour, especially with a 135 cutoff - a lot of offices have a 140 cut off (including mine). That defeats the whole purpose of a cut off. From what I understand, there are a lot of false positives with the 1 hour. The one hour tells you if you are at a high risk, not if you have GD. I'm a FTM with no experience in this ( I passed the one hour with a higher score than you but below the 140 cut off), but when I read it, I was a little shocked that they told you to watch your diet.

[silv3rlining]

Different OBs use different cutoffs. Normally I hear 139/140 for the cut off. With DS I did end up with GD. I got 174 on the 1 hour and failed the 3 hour barely (I was 2 pts over the 2 hr and 5 pts over 5 he 1 hr).

If you want to make changes a general rule of thumb is 1-2 protein servings (7-14g protein) for every carb serving (15g) and go for a walk after meals. Also eat smaller meals/snacks. (Like every 2-3 hours eat something)

[tjanca22]

I honestly don't know what my number was for by GD test, so this might not be helpful to you (and I apologize if it isn't). BUT, when Lent started back in February, I decided to give up snacking except for only fruits and vegetables. I'd still eat as I normally would at mealtimes. I didn't eat terrible before Lent, but I had junk food here and there. Before this change baby was measuring about 9-10 days ahead and since the change, baby is exactly where he or she should be. My OB even noticed a difference! Maybe just a small change will help?! Now that Lent is over, I'm aiming to keep up the fruits and veggies snacking until baby is here only for the sake of keeping a healthier diet and not excess weight gain.

[ladymouse]

140 is the normal diabetic post-meal cut-off. Some OBs like to keep it lower, as there are differing theories on how pregnancy affects blood sugar (my cut-off is 120. *weeps*)

A great deal of it is carb/protein ratio. If you eat yogurt, eat greek yogurt - the protein to sugar ratio is MUCH more reasonable. Caffeine can spike your blood sugar - it doesn't for everyone, but it does for some (me included). Drink lots of water - dehydration contributes to higher blood sugar. Incorporate light physical activity whenever you can (a sluggish circulatory system = higher blood sugar.) Better rest generally equates to better blood sugar, too. Stress can also raise your blood sugar.

There's also a lot you just won't know unless you do regular glucose testing, because EVERYONE is different. Some people have blood sugar spikes with artificial sweeteners, some don't (aspartame gives me migraines, so I just avoid artificial sweeteners to begin with.) Nuts, yogurt, and meat help my levels. Cheese does not. A "perfect" snack of a cheese stick leaves my fasting glucose much higher than yogurt with as much sugar as protein. "Starvation diabetes" can be a problem if you fasting numbers are high (why I failed by 2 points - I threw up dinner the night before my test, so I was effectively going on 16 hours of fasting instead of 12.) Some people benefit from a late/middle-of-the-night snack, some don't (I'm in the snacking category. Grabbing a handful of nuts one or two of the times I get up for the bathroom makes my fasting blood sugar WAY more stable.) My fasting blood sugar is also highly sensitive to sugar intake - my post meal reading will be fine after a meal with, say, french toast with strawberries, but my morning blood sugar will be almost as high as the post-meal. If I wake up too early, my numbers stay high (I have a toddler who is both sick and teething - my fasting numbers have been bad this week.) Being sick can raise your blood sugar, too (*hack hack sniffle*)

Part of me is having way too much fun puncturing my fingers 4 times a day. I like putting fluids on tests and recording the results.

[junch817]

I'm surprised most people seem to know their scores and the cut offs. They didn't tell me any of that. I took the test and received a call 2 days later with them saying "you passed." I have no idea where I scored.

[txngrl31]

Apr 8, 2015 18:56:40 GMT -5 junch817 said:

I'm surprised most people seem to know their scores and the cut offs. They didn't tell me any of that. I took the test and received a call 2 days later with them saying "you passed." I have no idea where I scored.

I only know my score because I looked on the online portal. I never received a phone call, and at my last dr visit, they said all blood work looked good. I didn't ask them to elaborate. I'm just assuming the cut off is 140, based on my score.

[silv3rlining]

Apr 8, 2015 18:56:40 GMT -5 junch817 said:

I'm surprised most people seem to know their scores and the cut offs. They didn't tell me any of that. I took the test and received a call 2 days later with them saying "you passed." I have no idea where I scored.

I had to ask for my results with DS. This time they told me the actual number (partially because they knew I had tested with my meter). I was (pleasantly surprised) amazed at the difference in my results vs their results. But I knew there could be a variance bw capillary and (veinous?) Blood glucose

[Widget123]

Apr 8, 2015 18:56:40 GMT -5 junch817 said:

I'm surprised most people seem to know their scores and the cut offs. They didn't tell me any of that. I took the test and received a call 2 days later with them saying "you passed." I have no idea where I scored.

Yep I have no idea.  My OB does not have an online portal so I only know what they tell me.  They said I passed and that's good enough for me.

[Bluedaisy]

My doctor actually showed me the numbers on her computer screen for each of the draws and explained why she thinks I failed my one hour. My baby was measuring in the 80th percentile but she's never said she was concerned only that she figures it's because of genetic (my husband is a big man).

[honeybunches101]

Last pregnancy I just barely passed, I think I got 138 and 140 was failing. I did not limit carbs at all and have a major sweet tooth. Tons of chocolate all the time, and DS was 8lb even. So you can watch carbs if you want, but if you don't hopefully your baby won't be totally massive.

[dmoney]

My cut off was 129. I failed my 1 hour with a 135 but then passed my 3 hour. My issue isnt my Blood Sugar being to high from fasting its from dropping to fast. My 2 and 3 hour draws were both under 65. My OB has me walking 30 minutes a night and eating every 2-3 hours to keep my level stable.. Not to change my diet just to watch how much exercise I do.

[gilder40]

A lot of you ladies scored higher than I did, but I didn't pass because my doctor's cut off is 130!! I scored a 131.

Here's the schedule and "diet" that my dietician told me to follow. No fruit before 9am, and no fruit juice unless my sugar is low. For breakfast, I have a 15-30 gram carb limit, for lunch, afternoon meal, and dinner I have a 30-45 gram carb limit, and for my evening snack I have a 15-30 gram limit. I only eat the evening snack if I eat dinner before 7:00 or so. And the afternoon meal is because I was going almost 7 hours between lunch and dinner.

[sidneyvicious]

So you passed the one hour? I think this is a situation where you're creating an issue for yourself. If you want to clean up your diet and incorporate exercise, okay, but your body is processing sugar/carbs/food just fine. A pass is a pass is a pass.

[silv3rlining]

gilder40 sounds like you only did the 1 hr? Why are they having you follow a "diet" without taking the 3 hr? The 1 hr is to get a better idea if you have GD but my understanding is its not used for actual diagnosis. Especially in the case where the number is close in range. If it was over 200 or so I could see an automatic diagnosis being made.

[mrskblack11]

Apr 8, 2015 21:08:03 GMT -5 @demanda88 said:

I also only know my score because of the online portal. Too much info, in my opinion because it leads to this kind of thing. In fact, I actually called them to ask about my score because the reference range the lab listed was 50-129 and it said I passed with a 132 which confused me. The baby has been measuring about 6 days ahead and was in the 82nd percentile at 24 weeks...so I'm mostly just concerned about him being really big due to just barely passing it. I honestly have no idea if that would have an effect on the birth weight or not but that's my concern.

There are two groups that put out the pass/fail range. The numbers your doctor uses comes from stricter test where you have to have 130 or under to pass. For the less strict test if you score under 140 you would pass. 

I wouldn't be concerned if I was you. You passed so your body is processing sugar normally. I failed the 1 hour, but took the 3 hour and passed. If your OB isn't concerned, then you shouldn't be either.

Baby measuring 6 days ahead is normal. Babies have growth spurts. Some babies measure 2 weeks ahead at any given time and it is still considered normal. If you are really concerned, just watch your carbs. I wouldn't obsess over it though if you don't have to. 

[gilder40]

Apr 9, 2015 12:04:15 GMT -5 silv3rlining said:

gilder40 sounds like you only did the 1 hr? Why are they having you follow a "diet" without taking the 3 hr? The 1 hr is to get a better idea if you have GD but my understanding is its not used for actual diagnosis. Especially in the case where the number is close in range. If it was over 200 or so I could see an automatic diagnosis being made.

No, I did the three hour as well. Those numbers were just as close as the one hour. My fasting was good, and my last blood draw was good. The second and third draw were over by 5 and 2 pts respectively (or something like that...it wasn't much). My doc wants me to monitor even though I'm "barely over" and basically "borderline" because I have pre-existing high blood pressure and a history of diabetes in my family. If I were to develop full-on gestational diabetes in conjunction with my blood pressure issues, the risk for certain complications increases.

[sidneyvicious]

For all those that passed that one-hour test, for all that passed the three-hour test, I say, eat all the cookies in honor of those who cannot!

[sidneyvicious]

For all those that passed that one-hour test, for all that passed the three-hour test, I say, eat all the cookies in honor of those who cannot!

Eta: apparently I was so excited I figured out how to GIF that I posted the same thing twice here and then one more time on the wrong thread. You know, for luck?

[silv3rlining]

Apr 9, 2015 12:18:49 GMT -5 gilder40 said:

Apr 9, 2015 12:04:15 GMT -5 silv3rlining said:

gilder40 sounds like you only did the 1 hr? Why are they having you follow a "diet" without taking the 3 hr? The 1 hr is to get a better idea if you have GD but my understanding is its not used for actual diagnosis. Especially in the case where the number is close in range. If it was over 200 or so I could see an automatic diagnosis being made.

No, I did the three hour as well. Those numbers were just as close as the one hour. My fasting was good, and my last blood draw was good. The second and third draw were over by 5 and 2 pts respectively (or something like that...it wasn't much). My doc wants me to monitor even though I'm "barely over" and basically "borderline" because I have pre-existing high blood pressure and a history of diabetes in my family. If I were to develop full-on gestational diabetes in conjunction with my blood pressure issues, the risk for certain complications increases.

Gotcha, your initial response only had the 1 hr info. Essentially you had the same results as I did with DS. Failing (regardless of how close) 2/4 draws will classify you as GD. I was able to control with diet/exercise. I only had a few numbers (maybe 4 total) that were over the cut off from do to delivery (and I was testing 6x/day).

[wormgerm]

Technically I passed but 2 values were close to the cutoff so my midwife wants me to have a nutrition consult and follow the diet. Phew. No finger pricks, no diagnosis. Just count carbs to keep this little boy from being a giant.

[gilder40]

silv3rlining I'm sorry I wasn't more specific! I did list just the hour numbers. I was so frustrated to be off by 1 point on a scale that was more strict than most. But it's really not that bad. Just testing my sugar 4x a day gets a little annoying. I already eat relatively healthy, so I really just had to restructure when I ate and what I ate at specific times.