Pregnancy Guilt & Health: Addressing Concerns at 28 Weeks

Question
Hi,

I am 32 years old.  I am 28 weeks pregnant.  I feel so guilty for what I have done.  In the beginning of my pregnancy a close family member passed away.  I got so depressed and did not take care of my body.  I have eaten junk food and sweets nearly everyday of this pregnancy.  I have not been drinking the required amount of water, either.  I have finally "snapped out" of my depression, but now I fear I have doomed my baby to a life of obesity.  I read a study that said a woman is predisposing her child to being fat if she eats too many carbs and junk during pregnancy.  Have you heard of this?  I feel so bad.  

Answer
The food that you eat will not determine how your baby eats or whether your baby will be obese or not.  HOwever, whatever your blood sugar is, so is your baby's. Your pancreas can handle the extra sugar, but the baby's pancreas cannot work that much and the sugar will get into the cells of the baby and possible cause macrosomia (large baby). This may make delivery difficult or may lead to delivery by cesarean section in order to avoid shoulder dystocia if the baby becomes too big to be delivered vaginally. At 28 weeks, you should be getting a 1 hour glucose tolerance test which will let you know if your glucose is within normal limits or whether you have gestational diabetes. If all is well, don't worry about the junk food that you have eaten and follow the diet that your doctor suggests from now on. Good Luck.