Glucose Tolerance Test Alternatives

One of the things I know I will do differently, is my reaction to the Glucose Tolerance Test (GTT).  For those of you who don’t know this is the common way to test for gestational diabetes during pregnancy and usually occurs between 24-28 weeks. You are required to drink a highly sugared beverage, wait an hour, get bloodwork done and pray you pass.  If you fail, you must then repeat the procedure during a 3 hour testing phase.

This picture came from here.

So why do I say I’ll do things differently?  Let me start by saying that gestational diabetes is something to be taken very seriously and can have harmful side effects to mom and baby if not properly treated.  With that being said, let me also share what my researching has found and possible help more women know their options.

There are several risks factors that put you at a higher probably of having gestational diabetes.  They include:

-Family history of diabetes
-Being overweight prior to pregnancy
-Being a member of a high risk ethnic group (Black, Native American, Hispanic, or Asian)
-Being over 25 years old (especially over 35)
-Given birth to a 9+ lb baby previously
-Have high blood pressure

 

While there are other factors, these are the majority. For me, I didn’t fall into any of them except that I’m 26.  Slightly over the age category. However, I didn’t know that there were alternatives until a few weeks before my test had already been scheduled and the office that I’m currently at will not accept alternative to the sugared beverage.

Why wouldn’t I want to just drink it? The drink is loaded with chemicals, a ridiculous amount of sugar, and is simply unrealistic to the normal sugars that the human body consumes which unnecessarily causes many women to have false positives during the one hour test, have to go back for the 3 hour test, only to pass that one after having to consume even more of the chemical-laden drink (Luckily, I did pass my 1hour test).

What are the side effects? For some women, extreme nausea occurs, including vomiting.  You are not allowed to eat or drink anything during this hour (including water) and if you vomit, you will have to re-drink. Additionally, some babies do not respond well to the fast increase in sugars and premature contractions can occur forcing the mother (and baby) to undergo more testing.

What are the alternatives? Midwives and/or smaller practices are much more reasonable in allowing alternatives from what I’ve read. Alternatives include:
-eating a high carb breakfast (usually pancakes or waffles with syrup and orange juice).
-tracking blood sugar at home over the period of usually one week
-eating candy that consists of the same number of grams as the Glucola (typically 50g and usually jelly beans are recommended)

The main point is that we, as women, have choices about everything in our pregnancy and it’s up to us to ask all the questions. I also really don’t like that all women are tested, when there is little to no research that says all women need to be tested.

Disclaimer:  These are simply my opinions.  I am not a medical professional and all choices made during your pregnancy should be discussed with your medical professional.