Most people have heard about type 1 and type 2 diabetes but many have not heard about another type of diabetes known as gestational diabetes, which affects about 4 percent of pregnant women.

There are about 135,000 cases of gestational diabetes in the United States each year. These women do not have diabetes but they develop high blood sugar levels during pregnancy due to hormones that block the action of the mother’s insulin in her body. This insulin resistance makes it difficult for the mother’s body to use insulin. Therefore, she may need up to three times as much insulin during pregnancy. Once the pregnancy is ended, the hormone causing insulin resistance diminishes; however, 30 percent of these women will have a problem with type 2 diabetes later on in life.

Be sure to reserve your copy of my book, Keep The Legs You Stand On to learn more about diabetes and your feet.

-drhinkes