Breakfast tolerance test

loveallthings

Anyone know if this is a better or more accurate way to measure blood sugar? My midwives said I could do the breakfast test, or drink the glucola. I chose the real food, because that glucola shit is nasty, and I've heard that it's harder for your body to process, which results in a higher number of false positives. Anyone have any experience with it?

kiki75

They do the glucola because it is the easiest way to control for all variables. Even if it does result in sending more people for the 3-hour (which may or may not be true but I don’t want to go down the Google rabbit hole right now, but I also do know a lot of people eat breakfast and then do the glucola so their false positive is user error), I would rather that than get a false negative. Uncontrolled GD is really bad for babies. And drinking that stuff is just a few minutes. I would just prepare for it better.

Would your provider’s office/testing center give you the glucola in advance so you can refrigerate it? Cold is way better than warm. If they won’t, you can just bring a gallon bag of ice and spin it on ice for about 30 seconds like you would do for any other drink you want to chill quickly. Then, use a straw to drink it (I just snagged one from a restaurant & brought it with me). That way you can bypass a lot of your tastebuds. 

Then, I know a number of people say that it leaves them feeling cruddy. So I would have a plan for something you can eat right after they do the blood draw. Maybe it’s a bag of almonds in your purse or plans to go to breakfast.

wishiwaspreggo

I actually really liked the glucola drink I wanted to ask for another because I was thirsty! But I failed by GD test miserably so there's that.

I honestly didn't think much of gestational diabetes other than hearing you could have a baby larger than average so I didn't think it was *that* serious but I followed the diet and did what I was told anyway. I have a friend, however, who - whether through ignorance on her part or unwillingness to comply - opted to NOT follow the diet correctly. She asked me to bring her brown sugar and maple oatmeal packets when she went into L&D and was waiting for her contractions to start. I don't know what she was thinking.

Anyway, when her baby was born she had heart problems, a hole in her bowel, high blood sugar, and trouble breathing. She was in the NICU for 2 weeks. It was all related to the gestational diabetes. I wish doctors would tell you that this is what could happen with uncontrolled GD. Simply hearing "high birth weight" isn't nearly as scary as heart problems or holes in the bowel.

Point is: listen to your doctor, go to the dietician if you have to, follow the diet, and check your sugars regularly.

loveallthings

I did the breakfast test, got a result of 63, which they consodered pretty low. I have a history of low blood sugar levels, although I’ve never been diagnosed as hypoglycemic. My midwives recommended that I up my protein intake, which will be hard. I used the glucola method in all of my other pregnancies, and my last pregnancy was a failed test! I went in for the 3 hour and they said my results on all of the draws were”abnormally” low. I wasn’t terribly worried about it, but wanted to make sure hat I didn’t have GD, because I know lower blood glucose levels can also be an indicator of diabetes. But everything looked good this time. Thanks for your input, ladies!

CecilB93

@wishiwaspreggo interesting, my MFM told me that baby being larger is the least of the concerns with GD, but it's what everyone focuses on apparently. I was told the big risks are *TW still birth, END TW* other birth complications, baby developing Type 2 or being obese later in life, pre-e for Mom, and higher risk of developing Type 2 within the next 3-5 years I believe. Yes they check baby's growth (currently 29 weeks), but high birth weight isn't really something we've been worrying about honestly.

@loveyme I've honestly never heard of the breakfast test. With my first I passed with glucola just fine, this one I failed pretty bad and it's been obvious just from testing my numbers that I am GD. Like wishiwaspreggo I also thought the glucola tasted good, I had the orange flavor.