Can Low Blood Sugar Cause Miscarriage

In The Study Placenta Cells Were Damaged By Insulin

In the study, the isolated placenta cells and control cells were exposed to amounts of insulin simulating the real-life levels of people with insulin resistance. This led to “profound damage” in the placenta cells, Williams said.

“Usually insulin acts as a growth factor,” he added. “If we take a muscle cell, a liver cell, a skin cell, and we grow it in the presence of elevated levels of insulin, those cells love it. It helps the cells grow better. The only cell that seems to have the opposite effect is the trophoblast cell. The placenta almost seems exquisitely sensitive to toxic effects from insulin.”

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This finding relates to miscarriage because the placenta, the organ that develops in the uterus to deliver oxygen and nutrients to a fetus, is important for healthy pregnancies.

“The placenta, especially early in pregnancy, plays such a critical role in terms of establishing the pregnancy and establishing good nutrients and oxygen supply to the embryo,” Williams said.

In a separate experiment for the study, the researchers exposed a new set of placenta cells to both insulin and the drug metformin, which is used to treat type 2 diabetes. They found that pre-treating the cells with metformin blocked insulin’s damaging effects.

Heart Failure Heart Attack Or Stroke

Excessive sweating can be a clear and emergent sign of heart failure, heart attack, or a stroke. If your sweating is an issue youve been dealing with on a regular basis for weeks and months, its likely not related to one of these life-threatening heart conditions.

Treatment: If youre also experiencing symptoms of shaking, chills, and fever, you should get to an emergency room immediately. As with everything else, getting your blood sugars into a healthier range can significantly reduce your chances of developing a cardiovascular condition.

The Link Between Miscarriage And Insulin Resistance

The joy of pregnancy can quickly turn to fear when multiple miscarriages occur, especially when those miscarriages have no explanation.

But researchers discovered why a woman’s blood sugar levels may be a factor.

As many as one in four pregnancies end in miscarriage each year, and it can be a heartbreaking experience for women.

“I felt kind of alone, even though I know my husband was there with me and my family knew about it, but I felt alone because they weren’t experiencing what I was experiencing,” Devani Conner said.

After three miscarriages, Conner sought help from Dr. Mark Trolice at the IVF Center. He understands what it’s like to be in her shoes.

“My wife and I went through ten years of infertility,” he said. “Ten years of struggle, of watching my patients cry during the day and my wife cry at night. And finally, we resolved by adopting our five children.”

Some miscarriages can be caused, in part, by hormonal problems, older age and poor lifestyle like obesity and smoking. But 50% are unexplained.

Now, a study published in the journal Fertility and Sterility says that insulin resistance might be a culprit.

“What we’re seeing is that in patients who have abnormal blood sugar control as well as prediabetes, and another word for that is insulin resistance, that may be associated with miscarriage,” Trolice said.

High insulin levels are toxic to the placenta. Trolice says women who have had a miscarriage should be screened for blood sugar control.

RESEARCH SUMMARY

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The Dl On Diabetes And Hypoglycemia

Having type 1, type 2, or gestational diabetes increases your chances of hypoglycemia, compared to someone who is pregnant but not diabetic. This is because your already fluctuating insulin levels have a new factor to deal with: pregnancy hormones.

Even if you arent taking medication for your diabetes, you may still experience hypoglycemic episodes. For this reason, you should eat a balanced diet and carefully monitor your blood sugar throughout your pregnancy.

Signs of hypoglycemia during pregnancy are similar to what a non-pregnant person with low blood sugar may experience . Symptoms may include:

• anxiety
• sweating
• tingling around the mouth

Once your blood sugar rises, these conditions typically disappear. The symptoms of severe hypoglycemia can be even more serious if left untreated. It can cause seizures, convulsions, or even loss of consciousness.

How Do Miscarriages Start

As the cervix dilates to empty, the bleeding becomes heavier. The heaviest bleeding is generally over within three to five hours from the time heavy bleeding begins. Lighter bleeding may stop and start over one to two weeks before it completely ends. The color of the blood can range from pink to red to brown.

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Target Blood Glucose Levels Before Pregnancy

When youre planning to become pregnant, your daily blood glucose targets may be different than your previous targets. Ask your health care team which targets are right for you.

You can keep track of your blood glucose levels using My Daily Blood Glucose Record. You can also use an electronic blood glucose tracking system on your computer or mobile device. Record the results every time you check your blood glucose. Your blood glucose records can help you and your health care team decide whether your diabetes care plan is working. You also can make notes about your insulin and ketones. Take your tracker with you when you visit your health care team.

If You Have Gestational Diabetes How Can You Help Prevent Getting Diabetes Later In Life

For most women, gestational diabetes goes away after giving birth. But having it makes you more likely to develop type 2 diabetes later in life. Type 2 diabetes is the most common kind of diabetes. If you have type 2 diabetes, your pancreas makes too little insulin or your body becomes resistant to it .

Heres what you can do to help reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes after pregnancy:

• Breastfeed. Breastfeeding can help you lose weight after pregnancy. Being overweight makes you more likely to develop type 2 diabetes.
• Get tested for diabetes 4 to 12 weeks after your baby is born. If the test is normal, get tested again every 1 to 3 years.
• Get to and stay at a healthy weight.
• Talk to your provider about medicine that may help prevent type 2 diabetes.

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Treatment For A Hypoglycaemic Attack

If you do experience the symptoms listed above, test your blood sugar if you can. This is because similar symptoms may also be caused by high blood sugar. If you cant test, assume that you are having a hypoglycaemic episode.

• Take 1015g of fast-acting carbohydrate. Dextrose tablets are ideal as they are easy to measure .
• If you dont have these, you can use a few sweets or a small glass of sugary drink .
• You could also use a small glass of pure fruit juice, though it does not work as quickly.
• Avoid chocolate or other fatty foods, as the sugar will be absorbed more slowly because of the fat content.

After that, eat a slower-release form of carbohydrate, such as a slice of bread or a piece of fruit, to keep your blood sugar up until the next meal.

As you recover, test your blood sugar regularly to check that your blood glucose is reaching the right levels for you. If you have a severe hypo, you have a greater risk of having another severe hypo for the next 24 hours.

How Do Doctors Test For Miscarriage

Most doctors wont recommend testing until after youve had more than one and sometimes three miscarriages, which can seem cruel, I know. This is because most of the time, women go on to have healthy pregnancies after having a miscarriage.

Some tests your doctor may be able to use to help determine the cause of recurrent miscarriage include:

• Tests for autoimmune diseases
• Uterine testing

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How Diabetes May Affect Your Baby

Babies born to women with diabetes are often much bigger, a condition called “macrosomia.”

Because their mothers have high blood sugar levels, they get too much sugar through the placenta. The baby’s pancreas senses it and makes more insulin to use it up. That extra sugar gets converted to fat, making a large baby.

Many hospitals keep an eye on babies of mothers with diabetes for several hours after birth. If you regularly have high blood sugar levels while you’re pregnant , your baby may get dangerously low blood sugar right after they’re born. Their insulin is based on your high sugar, and when it’s suddenly taken away, their blood sugar level drops quickly and they’ll need glucose to balance it out.

Their calcium and magnesium levels may be off, too. Those can be fixed with medication.

Some babies are too big to be delivered vaginally, and you’ll need a cesarean delivery or c-section. Your doctor will keep an eye on your baby’s size so you can plan for the safest way to give birth.

What Is Gestational Diabetes

Your body uses sugar for energy. The sugar goes from your blood into your body’s cells with the help of a hormone called insulin. Once the sugar is in the cells, it’s converted to energy or stored. But, if the body doesn’t make enough insulin, or it can’t use the insulin well, then the sugar has trouble moving into the cells and stays in the blood instead. High levels of sugar in the blood is called diabetes mellitus.

Gestational diabetes mellitus is diabetes that develops during pregnancy. After the pregnancy ends, gestational diabetes usually goes away, and blood sugar levels typically return to normal.

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What Causes Diabetes During Pregnancy

Some women have diabetes before they get pregnant. This is called pregestational diabetes. Other women may get a type of diabetes that only happens in pregnancy. This is called gestational diabetes. Pregnancy can change how a woman’s body uses glucose. This can make diabetes worse, or lead to gestational diabetes.

During pregnancy, an organ called the placenta gives a growing baby nutrients and oxygen. The placenta also makes hormones. In late pregnancy, the hormones estrogen, cortisol, and human placental lactogen can block insulin. When insulin is blocked, its called insulin resistance. Glucose can’t go into the bodys cells. The glucose stays in the blood and makes the blood sugar levels go up.

What Health Problems Could I Develop During Pregnancy Because Of My Diabetes

Pregnancy can worsen certain long-term diabetes problems, such as eye problems and kidney disease, especially if your blood glucose levels are too high.

You also have a greater chance of developing preeclampsia, sometimes called toxemia, which is when you develop high blood pressure and too much protein in your urine during the second half of pregnancy. Preeclampsia can cause serious or life-threatening problems for you and your baby. The only cure for preeclampsia is to give birth. If you have preeclampsia and have reached 37 weeks of pregnancy, your doctor may want to deliver your baby early. Before 37 weeks, you and your doctor may consider other options to help your baby develop as much as possible before he or she is born.

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Risk Factors And Signals

Its Williams hope that insulin resistance can be detected at an early stage to prevent pregnancy loss.

First, it was initially like, Oh the sugar levels are really high, now we have to start to treat. Here the data is suggesting that it might even be before the sugar levels start to get high that the insulin levels are high and treatment is necessary, Williams said.

While pre-screening is always a good idea, women in certain demographics have a higher risk of insulin resistance, according to the NIDDK.

Women with these risk factors should make insulin screening a priority prior to or in the early stages of their pregnancy:

• overweight or obese
• a family history of diabetes, heart disease, or stroke
• sedentary
• polycystic ovarian syndrome
• health conditions such as hormonal imbalances, high blood pressure, and abnormal cholesterol levels
• African American, Alaska Native, American Indian, Asian American, Hispanic/Latino, Native Hawaiian, or Pacific Islander American ethnicity

Similarly, women who are experiencing the following symptoms should make screening a priority as these can be signs of insulin resistance, according to Williams.

• hair on the face or body
• issues with high levels of acne
• sometimes irregular periods

Can You Miscarry While Taking Progesterone

During pregnancy, it helps maintain the uterine wall and is essential for womens menstrual cycle. Women with low progesterone are more likely to suffer abnormal uterine bleeding if they are not pregnant and more likely to miscarry if they are. Historically, however, there has been a lack of supplements for women prone to miscarriage.

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What You Should Do Prior To Getting Pregnant

To reduce chances of miscarriage after seeing heartbeat and miscarriage as a whole, you should:

Key Points About Diabetes During Pregnancy

• Diabetes is a condition in which the body can’t produce enough insulin, or it can’t use it normally.

• There are 3 types of diabetes: Type 1, tType 2, and gestational diabetes.

• Nearly all pregnant women without diabetes are screened for gestational diabetes between 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy.

• Treatment for diabetes focuses on keeping blood sugar levels in the normal range.

• Women with gestational diabetes are more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes in later life. Follow-up testing is important.

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See A Registered Dietitian Nutritionist

If you dont already see a dietitian, you should start seeing one before you get pregnant. Your dietitian can help you learn what to eat, how much to eat, and when to eat to reach or stay at a healthy weight before you get pregnant. Together, you and your dietitian will create a meal plan to fit your needs, schedule, food preferences, medical conditions, medicines, and physical activity routine.

During pregnancy, some women need to make changes in their meal plan, such as adding extra calories, protein, and other nutrients. You will need to see your dietitian every few months during pregnancy as your dietary needs change.

How Gdm Affects Parents

There are several potential complications of gestational diabetes for the pregnant person.

• Greater chance of delivering a preemie
• Greater risk of getting gestational diabetes again with another pregnancy
• Higher risk of developing other health issues such as high blood pressure and preeclampsia
• Increased chance of type 2 diabetes following the pregnancy
• More likely to have a C-section due to premature birth, complications, or a big baby

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How Is Diabetes During Pregnancy Treated

Treatment will depend on your symptoms, your age, and your general health. It will also depend on how severe the condition is.

Treatment focuses on keeping blood glucose levels in the normal range, and may include:

• A careful diet with low amounts of carbohydrate foods and drinks

• Exercise

• Oral medicines for hypoglycemia

How Can I Avoid Miscarriage

Preventing Miscarriage: Is There Anything You Can Do?

• If youre not already pregnant, schedule a pre-conception visit with your gynecologist.
• Eat a well-balanced diet.
• Avoid drugs, smoking, and alcohol.
• Get a handle on stress.
• Get your blood sugar under control .
• Ask if you should take low-dose aspirin.

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What It Means For Your Baby

If you have type 1 or type 2 diabetes, your baby may be at higher risk of:

• having health problems shortly after birth, such as heart and breathing problems, and needing hospital care
• developing obesity or diabetes later in life

There’s also a slightly higher chance of your baby being born with birth defects, particularly heart and nervous system abnormalities, or being stillborn or dying soon after birth.

But managing your diabetes well, before and during your pregnancy, will help to reduce these risks.

Checking Your Blood Sugar

Your body changes as the baby grows. Because you have diabetes, these changes will affect your blood sugar level. Pregnancy can also make symptoms of low blood sugar hard to detect.

During pregnancy, your diabetes control will require more work. The blood sugar checks you do at home are a key part of taking good care of yourself and your baby before, during, and after pregnancy.

Blood sugar targets are designed to help you minimize the risk of birth defects and miscarriage, and help prevent your baby from getting too large. If you have trouble staying in your target range or have frequent low blood sugar levels, talk to your health care team about revising your treatment plan. Target blood sugar values may differ slightly in different care systems and with different diabetic teams. Work with your health care team on determining your specific goals before and during pregnancy.

We suggest the following targets for women with preexisting diabetes who become pregnant. More or less stringent glycemic goals may be appropriate for each individual.

• Before a meal and bedtime/overnight: 60-99 mg/dl
• After a meal : 100-129 mg/dl
• A1C: less than 6%

*Postprandial glucose measurements should be made one to two hours after the beginning of the meal, which is generally when levels peak in people with diabetes.

Check your blood sugar levels at the times your diabetes care team advises this may be up to eight tests daily and will probably include after-meal checks.

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