Hearing "you have gestational diabetes" during pregnancy can be frightening, especially when you feel completely well. Take a breath: with the right care, the large majority of women with gestational diabetes go on to have healthy pregnancies and healthy babies. The condition is common, well understood, and very manageable. This guide explains what it is, the risks, what to eat, and how it's managed. It's part of our complete diabetes guide.
What is gestational diabetes?
Gestational diabetes (GDM) is high blood sugar that develops during pregnancy in women who didn't have diabetes before. During pregnancy, the placenta produces hormones that make your body's cells more resistant to insulin — a normal process, but in some women the pancreas can't keep up, so blood sugar rises. It typically appears in the second half of pregnancy and usually resolves after delivery.
Symptoms — usually none
Most women with gestational diabetes have no symptoms at all. That's why it's detected through routine screening rather than how you feel. Occasionally there may be increased thirst, more frequent urination, or extra tiredness — but these are common in normal pregnancy too, so they're unreliable. The takeaway: screening, not symptoms, catches GDM.