Research
Energy balance
Excessive gestational weight gain (GWG) in women with GDM increases the risk of adverse outcomes including hypertensive disorders, cesarean section, and large for gestational age (LGA) babies, and calorie restriction (30-33%) may be necessary for obese women who have already reached recommended weight gain.
If you are obese and have GDM, monitor your weight gain closely. If you reach the recommended limit, you may need to stabilize your weight with a moderate calorie reduction (30-33%) to improve blood sugar and reduce risks.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
In women with GDM, excessive weight gain has been associated with an increased risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, caesarean section, and LGA-babies [13,14]. ... In women with obesity and GDM, a 30–33% calorie restriction has been shown to reduce hyperglycaemia and plasma triglyceride levels [15].
Why this rating
Supported by meta-analyses and cohort studies.
Source
Diet and Healthy Lifestyle in the Management of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus
Louise M. Rasmussen et al. · Nutrients · 2020
DOI 10.3390/nu12103050
narrative_reviewCited 297×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- For women with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM), lifestyle modification (medical nutrition therapy and physical activity) alone is sufficient to control blood glucose in 70–85% of cases, making it the essential first-line treatment.Good
- Carbohydrate intake should not be restricted below the levels recommended for normal pregnancies (minimum 175g/day), and the focus should be on the type, amount, and distribution of carbohydrates to avoid postprandial hyperglycemia and ketonemia.Good
- Low Glycemic Index (GI) and Glycemic Load (GL) diets significantly reduce postprandial glucose levels in women with GDM, though they may not significantly impact primary neonatal outcomes like birth weight or macrosomia.Good
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