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For women with type 2 diabetes

Blood glucose monitoring during pregnancy

It is essential to monitor your blood glucose levels frequently during your pregnancy. You will be asked to monitor before meals and one to two hours after meals. You may, at times, be advised to do some extra monitoring, such as before bed and overnight.

Monitoring will help you and your diabetes in pregnancy team to get a better understanding of your blood glucose levels, so you can achieve the best possible management of your diabetes. If you are taking insulin, monitoring can help you make decisions about adjusting insulin doses. Extra monitoring can also help you avoid hypos.

Your diabetes in pregnancy team will discuss your blood glucose levels with you at each appointment. Writing these in a record book or diary can help you and your team better understand patterns in your blood glucose levels. You may also be asked to keep a food diary. Be sure to take your record book and blood glucose meter with you to appointments.

Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) or flash glucose monitoring (Flash GM) may be suggested during your pregnancy. CGM uses a sensor placed under the skin to continually detect changes in glucose levels and to provide additional information about glucose patterns. This can be useful, but it does not replace the monitoring you do yourself.

While CGM or Flash GM can be very helpful during pregnancy, these devices are not subsided by the NDSS for people with type 2 diabetes. They are considerably more expensive than finger-prick blood glucose monitoring. Ask your diabetes in pregnancy team for more information about Continuous and flash glucose monitoring.

Blood glucose targets

Your diabetes in pregnancy team will discuss individual blood glucose targets with you. They will encourage you to check your blood glucose levels frequently and will work with you to keep these as close to the target range as possible. Managing diabetes during pregnancy can be challenging—the aim is to keep blood glucose levels within your individual target range. Discuss your individual targets with your diabetes in pregnancy team.

Diabetes Australia acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the Traditional Owners and Custodians of this Country. We recognise their connection to land, waters, winds and culture. We pay the upmost respect to them, their cultures and to their Elders, past and present. We are committed to improving health outcomes for all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people affected by diabetes and those at risk.

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