Gestational Diabetes: Counting Carbs
Carbohydrate counting helps you to control your blood sugar when you have
gestational diabetes.
- Carbohydrate counting helps you determine the
amount of sugar and starch (carbohydrate) in the foods you eat. This is
important, because carbohydrate affects your blood sugar more than fats or
proteins do.
- Carbohydrate counting involves learning how to spread
out the amount of carbohydrate you eat throughout the day to help prevent high
blood sugar after eating.
- You should test your blood sugar after
meals to see what effect different carbohydrate foods have on your blood sugar
level.
Carbohydrate counting
helps you to control your blood sugar when you have gestational diabetes.
Carbohydrate counting involves adding up the amount of carbohydrate in the
foods you eat each day and spreading carbohydrate out throughout the
day.
Carbohydrate includes fruits; starchy vegetables (such as potatoes and corn); milk and
yogurt; starches (breads, cereals, rice, and pasta); and sugar (such as candy and desserts). All forms of
carbohydrate increase your blood sugar.
- Sugary foods such as cakes and cookies often have
more total carbohydrate in a serving, or standard portion, than starchy foods
such as bread.
- You can eat foods that contain sugar when you have
gestational diabetes. But eating too many sugary foods probably means you are
not eating enough healthy foods.
Test Your Knowledge
-
Carbohydrate counting helps me know how much
carbohydrate I am eating during a meal.
-
True
This answer is correct.
Carbohydrate counting does help you know how
much carbohydrate you are eating during a meal. Carbohydrate is the nutrient
that most affects your blood sugar. Counting carbohydrate allows you to spread
the amount you eat throughout the day. This prevents high blood sugar after
meals.
-
False
This answer is incorrect.
Carbohydrate counting does help you know how
much carbohydrate you are eating during a meal. Carbohydrate is the nutrient
that most affects your blood sugar. Counting carbohydrate allows you to spread
the amount you eat throughout the day. This prevents high blood sugar after
meals.
-
Which of the following foods contain
carbohydrate?
-
Wheat bread, rice, peas, and oatmeal
Both answers are correct.
Wheat bread, rice, peas, and oatmeal all
contain carbohydrate. Carbohydrate is an essential nutrient that comes in two
forms: starch and sugar. Starch is found in foods such as bread, cereal,
grains, and vegetables. Sugar is found in fruit, milk, desserts, and candy.
Both answers to this question are correct.
-
Cheesecake, fat-free milk, and pears
Both answers are correct.
Cheesecake, fat-free milk, and pears all
contain sugar, a form of carbohydrate. Carbohydrate is an essential nutrient
that comes in two forms: starch and sugar. Starch is found in foods such as
bread, cereal, grains, and vegetables. Sugar is found in fruit, milk, desserts,
and candy. Both answers to this question are correct.
Counting
carbohydrate helps you know how much carbohydrate you are eating during a meal.
The more carbohydrate you eat at one time, the higher your blood sugar level
rises. Carbohydrate counting helps if:
- You don't take insulin. Counting carbohydrate
helps you know how much carbohydrate you need to eat during each meal to
prevent high blood sugar.
- You take
insulin before meals, and your doctor wants to adjust
the amount you take according to the amount of carbohydrate in the meal.
(For example, a pregnant woman might take 1 unit of fast-acting
insulin for every 10 grams of carbohydrate she plans to eat.)
Eating a certain amount of carbohydrate and spreading it
throughout the day will help keep your blood sugar levels within a
Reference target range and prevent a blood sugar emergency. High blood sugar can increase
the risk of problems with your health or your baby's health.
Test Your Knowledge
-
Counting carbohydrate helps me regulate the amount of
carbohydrate I eat to prevent harm to my baby from high blood
sugar.
-
True
This answer is correct.
Counting carbohydrate does help you regulate
the amount of carbohydrate you eat to prevent harm to your baby from high blood
sugar. The more carbohydrate you eat at one meal, the higher your blood sugar
will rise after the meal. High blood sugar can lead to an emergency and can
also harm your baby.
-
False
This answer is incorrect.
Counting carbohydrate does help you regulate
the amount of carbohydrate you eat to prevent harm to your baby from high blood
sugar. The more carbohydrate you eat at one meal, the higher your blood sugar
will rise after the meal. High blood sugar can lead to an emergency and can
also harm your baby.
Here are some ways to help
you count carbohydrate and spread carbohydrate throughout the day.
Eat regularly
Eat at least three
meals a day to spread your intake of food, especially carbohydrate, throughout
the day.
It is a great idea to get out your cookbooks and plan
several main meals at the same time. You can double some recipes and freeze the
leftovers to use for other meals. Try making a list of menus 
(What is a Reference PDF Opens New Window document?) to post on your
refrigerator.
Count carbohydrate
The following suggestions can help you count
carbohydrate and control your blood sugar:
- Talk with a
registered dietitian to help plan the amount of
carbohydrate to include in each meal and snack.
- Get a book that
lists the carbohydrate content in different foods.
- Eat standard
portions of Reference carbohydrate foods. Each serving size or standard portion contains about 15 grams of
carbohydrate. It might be helpful to weigh your food when you are first learning what makes up a standard portion.
-
Reference Count either grams or servings of carbohydrate. If you are having high blood sugar
levels after breakfast, you may want to decrease the amount of
carbohydrate in that meal.
- Eat standard portions of
Reference foods that contain protein. Talk with a registered
dietitian about how much protein you need.
- Talk with a registered
dietitian about how much Reference fat you need.
Other suggestions
-
Reference Read food labels for the carbohydrate
content, and check the serving size on the package.
- Check your
blood sugar level before and 1 hour after eating the first bite of each meal to see how
the food affects it.
- Record what you eat and your blood sugar
results in a food record (What is a Reference PDF Opens New Window document?). At each regular visit with your diabetes specialist,
or whenever you think your meal plan needs adjusting, you can review the
food record.
- Get more help. The American Diabetes Association offers
booklets to help people learn how to count carbohydrate, measure and weigh
food, and read food labels.
Test Your Knowledge
-
Calculate the carbohydrate content in the following
breakfast: 2 eggs, 1 cup of milk, 1
slice of toast, and 2 teaspoons of margarine.
-
30 grams of carbohydrate
This answer is correct.
This breakfast contains 30 grams of
carbohydrate. There are no carbohydrate in the eggs, 15 in the milk, 15 in the
toast, and none in the margarine. If you had problems with this exercise, take
the question with you on your next visit with your doctor or dietitian and ask
him or her to help you learn how to calculate the carbohydrate content in
food.
-
35 grams of carbohydrate
This answer is incorrect.
The breakfast (2 eggs, 1 cup of milk, 1 slice
of toast, and 2 teaspoons of margarine) contains fewer than 35 grams of
carbohydrate. The correct answer is 30 grams of carbohydrate.
There are no carbohydrate in the eggs, 15 in the milk, 15 in the toast, and
none in the margarine. If you had problems with this exercise, take the
question with you on your next visit with your doctor or dietitian and ask him
or her to help you learn how to calculate the carbohydrate content in
food.
-
22 grams of carbohydrate
This answer is incorrect.
The breakfast (2 eggs, 1 cup of milk, 1 slice
of toast, and 2 teaspoons of margarine) contains more than 22 grams of
carbohydrate. The correct answer is 30 grams of carbohydrate.
There are no carbohydrate in the eggs, 15 in the milk, 15 in the toast, and
none in the margarine. If you had problems with this exercise, take the
question with you on your next visit with your doctor or dietitian and ask him
or her to help you learn how to calculate the carbohydrate content in
food.
-
Calculate the carbohydrate content in the following
lunch: 1 cup of macaroni, ½ cup of
grated cheese, ½ cup of carrots, and one fresh apple.
-
70 grams of carbohydrate
This answer is incorrect.
This lunch (1 cup of macaroni, ½ cup of grated
cheese, ½ cup of carrots, one fresh apple) has fewer than 70 grams of
carbohydrate. The correct answer is 65 grams of carbohydrate.
There are 45 grams of carbohydrate in 1 cup of macaroni, none in the grated
cheese, 5 in ½ cup of carrots, and 15 in one fresh apple. This much
carbohydrate in your meal is likely to raise your sugar level a lot. If you had
problems with this exercise, take the question with you on your next visit with
your doctor or dietitian and ask him or her to help you learn how to calculate
the carbohydrate content in food.
-
40 grams of carbohydrate
This answer is incorrect.
This lunch (1 cup of macaroni, ½ cup of grated
cheese, ½ cup of carrots, one fresh apple) has more than 40 grams of
carbohydrate. The correct answer is 65 grams of carbohydrate.
There are 45 grams of carbohydrate in 1 cup of macaroni, none in the grated
cheese, 5 in ½ cup of carrots, and 15 in one fresh apple. This much
carbohydrate in your meal is likely to raise your sugar level a lot. If you had
problems with this exercise, take the question with you on your next visit with
your doctor or dietitian and ask him or her to help you learn how to calculate
the carbohydrate content in food.
-
65 grams of carbohydrate
This answer is correct.
Yes, this lunch (1 cup of macaroni, ½ cup of
grated cheese, ½ cup of carrots, one fresh apple) contains 65 grams of
carbohydrate. There are 45 grams of carbohydrate in 1 cup of macaroni, none in
the grated cheese, 5 in ½ cup of carrots, and 15 in one fresh apple. This much
carbohydrate in your meal is likely to raise your sugar level a lot. If you had
problems with this exercise, take the question with you on your next visit with
your doctor or dietitian and ask him or her to help you learn how to calculate
the carbohydrate content in food.
Now that you have read this
information, you are ready to calculate the amount of carbohydrate you are
eating.
Talk with your health professional
If you have
questions about this information, take it with you when you visit your doctor, registered dietitian, or certified diabetes educator.
If you need help with carbohydrate counting or menu planning, talk with a
registered dietitian. If you have been keeping a diet record, take it with you
when you visit your doctor or dietitian.
More information about the different types of diabetes
can be found in these topics:
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