Safe Weight Management During Pregnancy with Hypertension & Insulin Resistance

Question
Hi I am a 27 year old woman who is overweight and just concieved my second child. I have a history of hypertension and am insulin resistant -have taken diabex but not recommended now I am pregnant. I am hoping to loose weight though I am pregnant and was wondering if there is a safe way to do this.I was taking RoyalJelly and chromium and was wondering if I could continue with these?? Please help

Answer
You right to be concerned about your health status during this pregnancy as being overweight, high risk for gestational diabetes, and other maternal health challenges can have long term negative effects on your developing baby.

While it is outside of my scope of practice to recommend or not recommend either prescription or over-the-counter dietary supplements, I can give you some welcome news. Recent studies on the effect of exercise during pregnancy and gestational diabetes are very encouraging.

In one study, women who had gestational diabetes and who were insulin dependent, were given only 20 minutes of daily, moderate aerobic exercise on a stationary bike were able to alter the status of their diabetes enough to go off insulin. A very dramatic improvement.

Riding a stationary bike is very safe and easy on the joints, very important factors for pregnancy in general, but especially for those that are less fit.

I suggest that you meet with a Registered Dietician, who can assess you current dietary habits and give you specific guidelines that you can follow to minimize your weight gain (or possibly even loose weight safely), your risk for developing gestational diabetes, and moderate your high blood pressure.

Also, speak to you OBGYN about adding in 20 minutes of daily moderate level exercise, either a walking program, and/or use of a stationary bike at home. Aqua aerobics classes are also very easy on the body and good during pregnancy too.

In the big picture of things, maternal health and fetal health are one in the same. In order to have the healthiest baby possible, you will need to alter your lifestyle. This will most likely mean eliminating habits that are contributing to your health challenges, as well as adopting new habits that enhance health.

As mothers, the best gift we can give our children is health. And to do that, we need to become the health leaders of our families. We need to make daily health enhancing choices for both our selves and for out children. Leading through example is the ONLY effective form of leadership. We need to "walk the walk," literally.