Gestational diabetes is high blood sugar that you get only when you're pregnant. The word "gestational" means the time when the baby grows in the womb. About 3 to 5 out of every 100 pregnant women have this disease. You can get it even if you didn't have diabetes before your pregnancy.

Good blood sugar control is important for your health and your baby’s. The first step in managing it is to understand what causes gestational diabetes.

Pregnancy and High Blood Sugar

When you eat, your body breaks down carbohydrates from foods into a sugar called glucose. The sugar goes into your bloodstream. From there, it travels to your cells to give your body energy. An organ called the pancreas makes a hormone called insulin, which helps move sugar into your cells and lower the amount in your blood.

During pregnancy, the placenta -- the organ that feeds and delivers oxygen to your baby -- releases hormones that help your baby grow. Some of these make it harder for your body to make or use insulin. This is called insulin resistance.

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