Best time to check blood sugar in the morning gestational diabetes

Table of Contents Show

Continue Learning about Diabetes
How It Works
What You Can Do
Routine screening for gestational diabetes
Lifestyle changes
Blood sugar monitoring
Close monitoring of your baby
Follow-up after delivery
Clinical trials
Coping and support
Preparing for your appointment
What you can do
What to expect from your doctor
When should I take my fasting blood sugar in the morning for gestational diabetes?
How soon after waking should you test blood sugar?
What should your blood sugar be in the morning gestational diabetes?
When should I check my blood sugar for gestational diabetes?

Work with your doctor to come up with a schedule for testing your blood sugar. Factors for you and your doctor to consider in developing your schedule include the medicines you take, when you eat and how well-controlled your blood sugar is. Many people with diabetes find that it works well for them to check blood sugar first thing in the morning, but talk with your doctor to find out what's best for you.

Check your blood glucose immediately on awakening—before any morning activities, such as showering, shaving or putting on makeup. The reason for this schedule is that if your blood glucose is low, you can drink some juice or milk. If it is high, you can take your insulin immediately and allow it to work at least one hour before breakfast. It is important to get into this habit, because if you start the day with a normal blood glucose level before breakfast, keeping your blood glucose under control throughout the day is much easier. Monitoring your sugar immediately on awakening does not take a major change in lifestyle, but it is very effective in improving your blood glucose control.

Continue Learning about Diabetes

Important: This content reflects information from various individuals and organizations and may offer alternative or opposing points of view. It should not be used for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. As always, you should consult with your healthcare provider about your specific health needs.

That early morning jump in your blood sugar? It's called the dawn phenomenon or the dawn effect. It usually happens between 2 and 8 a.m.

But why?

How It Works

Generally, the normal hormonal changes your body makes in the morning will boost your blood sugar, whether you have diabetes or not. If you don't, your body just makes more insulin to balance everything out. You don't even notice that it's happening.

But if you have diabetes, it's different. Since your body doesn't respond to insulin the same as most, your fasting blood sugar reading can go up, even if you follow a strict diet.

The boost in sugar is your body's way of making sure you have enough energy to get up and start the day. If you have diabetes, your body may not have enough insulin to counteract these hormones. That disrupts the delicate balance that you work so hard to keep, and your sugar readings can be too high by morning.

The effects of the dawn phenomenon can vary from person to person, even from day to day.

Some researchers believe the natural overnight release of what are called counter-regulatory hormones -- like growth hormones, cortisol, glucagon and epinephrine -- makes your insulin resistance stronger. This will make your blood sugar go up.

You may also have high blood sugar in the morning because:

You didn't have enough insulin the night before.
You took too much or too little medicine.
You ate the wrong snack before bedtime.

What You Can Do

If the dawn phenomenon affects you, try to:

Eat dinner earlier in the evening.
Do something active after dinner, like going for a walk.
Check with your health care provider about the medicine you’re taking.
Eat breakfast. It helps bring your blood sugar back to normal, which tells your body that it's time to rein in the anti-insulin hormones.
Eat a snack with some carbohydrates and protein before bed.

You'll also want to avoid all sugar-sweetened beverages, like soda, fruit punch, fruit drinks, and sweet tea. Just a single serving can raise your blood sugar -- and, in some cases, give you hundreds of extra calories.

If you have diabetes, chances are your blood sugar will be higher in the morning from time to time. That may not be something to be overly concerned about. If it happens for several mornings in a row, check it once during the night -- around 2 or 3 a.m. -- for a few nights. Then, take those numbers to your doctor. They can figure out if you really have the dawn phenomenon, or if something else is causing those higher morning numbers.

Diagnosis

If you're at average risk of gestational diabetes, you'll likely have a screening test during your second trimester — between 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy.

If you're at high risk of diabetes — for example, if you're overweight or obese before pregnancy; you have a mother, father, sibling or child with diabetes; or you had gestational diabetes during a previous pregnancy — your health care provider may test for diabetes early in pregnancy, likely at your first prenatal visit.

Routine screening for gestational diabetes

Screening tests may vary slightly depending on your health care provider, but generally include:

Initial glucose challenge test. You'll drink a syrupy glucose solution. One hour later, you'll have a blood test to measure your blood sugar level. A blood sugar level of 190 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL), or 10.6 millimoles per liter (mmol/L), indicates gestational diabetes.
A blood sugar level below 140 mg/dL (7.8 mmol/L) is usually considered within the standard range on a glucose challenge test, although this may vary by clinic or lab. If your blood sugar level is higher than expected, you'll need another glucose tolerance test to determine if you have gestational diabetes.
Follow-up glucose tolerance testing. This test is similar to the initial test — except the sweet solution will have even more sugar and your blood sugar will be checked every hour for three hours. If at least two of the blood sugar readings are higher than expected, you'll be diagnosed with gestational diabetes.

Treatment

Treatment for gestational diabetes includes:

Lifestyle changes
Blood sugar monitoring
Medication, if necessary

Managing your blood sugar levels helps keep you and your baby healthy. Close management can also help you avoid complications during pregnancy and delivery.

Lifestyle changes

Your lifestyle — how you eat and move — is an important part of keeping your blood sugar levels in a healthy range. Health care providers usually don't advise losing weight during pregnancy — your body is working hard to support your growing baby. But your health care provider can help you set weight gain goals based on your weight before pregnancy.

Lifestyle changes include:

Healthy diet. A healthy diet focuses on fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean protein — foods that are high in nutrition and fiber and low in fat and calories — and limits highly refined carbohydrates, including sweets. A registered dietitian or a certified diabetes care and education specialist can help you create a meal plan based on your current weight, pregnancy weight gain goals, blood sugar level, exercise habits, food preferences and budget.
Staying active. Regular physical activity plays a key role in every wellness plan before, during and after pregnancy. Exercise lowers your blood sugar. As an added bonus, regular exercise can help relieve some common discomforts of pregnancy, including back pain, muscle cramps, swelling, constipation and trouble sleeping.

With your health care provider's OK, aim for 30 minutes of moderate exercise on most days of the week. If you haven't been active for a while, start slowly and build up gradually. Walking, cycling and swimming are good choices during pregnancy. Everyday activities such as housework and gardening also count.

Blood sugar monitoring

While you're pregnant, your health care team may ask you to check your blood sugar four or more times a day — first thing in the morning and after meals — to make sure your level stays within a healthy range.

Medication

If diet and exercise aren't enough to manage your blood sugar levels, you may need insulin injections to lower your blood sugar. A small number of women with gestational diabetes need insulin to reach their blood sugar goals.

Some health care providers prescribe an oral medication to manage blood sugar levels. Other health care providers believe more research is needed to confirm that oral medications are as safe and as effective as injectable insulin to manage gestational diabetes.

Close monitoring of your baby

An important part of your treatment plan is close observation of your baby. Your health care provider may check your baby's growth and development with repeated ultrasounds or other tests. If you don't go into labor by your due date — or sometimes earlier — your health care provider may induce labor. Delivering after your due date may increase the risk of complications for you and your baby.

Follow-up after delivery

Your health care provider will check your blood sugar level after delivery and again in 6 to 12 weeks to make sure that your level has returned to within the standard range. If your tests are back in this range — and most are — you'll need to have your diabetes risk assessed at least every three years.

If future tests indicate type 2 diabetes or prediabetes, talk with your health care provider about increasing your prevention efforts or starting a diabetes management plan.

Clinical trials

Explore Mayo Clinic studies testing new treatments, interventions and tests as a means to prevent, detect, treat or manage this condition.

Coping and support

It's stressful to know you have a condition that can affect your unborn baby's health. But the steps that will help control your blood sugar level — such as eating healthy foods and exercising regularly — can help relieve stress, nourish your baby and help prevent type 2 diabetes in the future.

You may feel better if you learn as much as you can about gestational diabetes. Talk to your health care team, or read books and articles about gestational diabetes. You may find a support group for people with gestational diabetes helpful. Ask your health care team for suggestions.

Preparing for your appointment

You'll likely find out you have gestational diabetes from routine screening during your pregnancy. Your health care provider may refer you to additional health professionals who specialize in diabetes, such as an endocrinologist, a certified diabetes care and education specialist, or a registered dietitian. One or more of these care providers can help you learn to manage your blood sugar level during your pregnancy.

You may want to take a family member or friend along to your appointment, if possible. Someone who accompanies you may remember something that you missed or forgot.

Here's some information to help you get ready for your appointment and know what to expect from your health care provider.

What you can do

Before your appointment:

Be aware of pre-appointment restrictions. When you make your appointment, ask if you need to fast for lab tests or do anything else to prepare for diagnostic tests.
Make a list of symptoms you're having, including those that may seem unrelated to gestational diabetes. You may not have noticeable symptoms, but it's good to keep a log of anything unusual you notice.
Make a list of key personal information, including major stresses or recent life changes.
Make a list of all medications, including over-the-counter drugs and vitamins or supplements you're taking.
Make a list of questions to help make the most of your time with your health care provider.

Some basic questions to ask your health care provider include:

What can I do to help control my condition?
Can you recommend a registered dietitian or certified diabetes care and education specialist who can help me plan meals, an exercise program and coping strategies?
Will I need medication to control my blood sugar?
What symptoms should prompt me to seek medical attention?
Are there brochures or other printed materials I can take? What websites do you recommend?

What to expect from your doctor

Your health care provider is also likely to have questions for you, especially if it's your first visit. Questions may include:

Have you experienced increased thirst or excessive urination? If so, when did these symptoms start? How often do you have them?
Have you noticed other unusual symptoms?
Do you have a parent or sibling who's ever been diagnosed with diabetes?
Have you been pregnant before? Did you have gestational diabetes during your previous pregnancies?
Did you have other problems in previous pregnancies?
If you have other children, how much did each weigh at birth?

When should I take my fasting blood sugar in the morning for gestational diabetes?

Blood sugar monitoring Fasting (in the morning before eating): 60 to 95. One hour after the start of each meal: less than 140.

How soon after waking should you test blood sugar?

Blood sugar testing at home In most cases, doctors ask people to measure fasting blood sugar immediately upon waking and before they have anything to eat or drink. It may also be appropriate to test blood sugar before eating or 2 hours after a meal, which is when blood sugar returns to normal levels.

What should your blood sugar be in the morning gestational diabetes?

We suggest the following target for women testing blood glucose levels during pregnancy: Before a meal: 95 mg/dl or less. One hour after a meal: 140 mg/dl or less. Two hours after a meal: 120 mg/dl or less.

When should I check my blood sugar for gestational diabetes?

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends performing a one-hour blood glucose challenge test to screen for gestational diabetes in low-risk pregnant women between 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy.