Gestational diabetes: Counting carbs
What is carbohydrate counting?
Carbohydrate counting is the best way 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 and sweet vegetables; milk and milk products; starches (breads, cereals, rice, pasta, and vegetables such as potatoes and corn); and sugar (such as candy and desserts). All forms of carbohydrate increase your blood sugar.
- Sugary foods such as cakes and cookies 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.
Which of the following foods contain carbohydrate?
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Why do I need to count carbohydrate?
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| Author: | Caroline Rea, RN, BS, MS | Last Updated: December 4, 2007 |
| Medical Review: | Caroline S. Rhoads, MD - Internal Medicine Lois Jovanovic, MD - Endocrinology | |
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