Eating well checklist for glucose tolerance test Eating a healthy diet during pregnancy is important for you and your baby Follow us on Twitter @NHSaaa Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/nhsaaa Visit our website: www.nhsaaa.net All our publications are available in other formats This checklist provides further information to add to the healthy eating checklist you may have completed at the beginning of your pregnancy. You are having a glucose tolerance test because you are at risk of developing gestational diabetes (diabetes during pregnancy). Making a few small changes to your diet will help regulate your blood glucose levels and help you manage your weight, which will be beneficial for you and your baby. Even if your glucose tolerance test is normal, the following checklist will help you identify small changes to your current eating habits. 2 Diet at the moment Advice and suggestions 1. Your daily eating pattern: Please tick: In order for you to get all the • Breakfast, lunch, evening nutrients you require and to keep meal and supper. your blood glucose level stable, it is important that you eat regular • Skip a meal most days – meals. Try to get into a regular often breakfast. pattern of having a breakfast, lunch • Skip meals during the and evening meal; this will help day and eat at night. you avoid feeling hungry and over • Don’t have a set pattern, eating. mainly snack or eat when I feel hungry. 2. Do you eat rice, potatoes, Please tick: These foods will help control your pasta, bread or cereals: blood glucose levels. • At every meal? It is important to have a portion • At one meal every day? of these foods at each meal. Try to have higher fibre varieties such as • Try to keep them to a wholemeal / wholegrain breads minimum. and cereals. Try not to double up – for example, don’t have pasta and bread at the same meal. 3. At each meal do you: Please tick: Try not to have second portions. • Stop eating when full? Try filling up one half of your • Finish everything on plate with vegetables or salad, one your plate? quarter with starchy foods such as bread, rice, potatoes, or pasta and • Finish everything on the rest with low fat varieties of your plate and often protein such as meat, fish, chicken, have second helpings / lentils, or beans. finish leftovers? 3 Diet at the moment Advice and suggestions 4. How many portions of I eat Aim for no more than three fruit do you eat a day? portions of fruit a day. Although A portion is roughly what fruit tastes sweet it should not you can fit in the palm of affect your blood glucose, portions your hand or the following: provided you do not eat it in large quantities. It is best to eat only • A piece of fruit like an one portion at a time and limit apple, orange or banana. fruit juice to one portion a day. • Two small pieces of fruit Fruit is a good snack between like tangerines or plums. meals as it is high in fibre and can • A small glass of fresh help prevent constipation. fruit juice (150ml). • Three tablespoons of fruit salad/chopped fruit. 5. How many portions of I eat Aim to have at least three large vegetables do you eat in portions of vegetables a day. This a day? (Do not include will help to fill you up as well potatoes) as provide you with essential portions A portion is: vitamins, minerals and fibre. Fresh, frozen and tinned are all • Three tablespoons suitable too. of cooked or raw vegetables. • One cereal bowl of salad. • One bowl of vegetable soup. 6. Do you eat red meat, fish, Please tick: These foods provide protein for chicken, nuts, eggs or growth of your baby and are pulses? good sources of vitamins and • Every day. minerals. Try to include two small portions a day. Red meat and • Most days. pulses such as beans, lentils and • Once or twice a week. chickpeas are good sources of • Never / rarely. iron. 4 Diet at the moment Advice and suggestions 7. Do you eat cakes, sweets, Please tick: These foods are high in sugar chocolate or biscuits: and fat. If you eat a lot of these • Rarely or never? between meals they will cause a rise in your blood glucose. Try a • Once a day or less? small pancake, crumpet, cracker or • Two to three times a day oatcake instead. or more? 8. Do you mainly drink: Please tick: It is important to drink enough • Water, diet fizzy drinks fluid to avoid dehydration. Try or sugar-free diluting to drink six to eight glasses juices? of fluid a day, water, diet and sugar free drinks are the best • Fizzy and diluting sugary choice. Tea, coffee and some drinks? diet drinks contain caffeine; it is • Tea / coffee? recommended that you do not • Milk or fresh fruit juices? have more than 200mg of caffeine a day. Drinking too much milk or fruit juice can affect your blood glucose levels; a suitable serving would be 200ml of milk or 150ml of fresh fruit juice. Do not add sugar to drinks. 9. Do you eat take-away Please tick: The portion sizes of take-away food: food are often large, so try to • Once a week or less? share a meal. These foods can be high in sugar, fat and salt so you • Two to three times a should try and keep them for an week? occasional treat. • Every day? 5 Foods to try to avoid and their alternatives Try to avoid Alternative Sugar, glucose, sucrose, dextrose, Sugar-free drinks, artificial sweeteners all sweetened drinks, sweets and – for example Canderel, Sweetex, chocolates. Splenda. Sweet pastries, pies, crumbles, Fresh fruit or fruit tinned in natural cheesecakes, meringues, sponge juice, sugar free jellies or low calorie puddings, trifle, tinned fruits in syrup, and natural yoghurts. table jellies and standard yoghurts. Sugar coated breakfast cereals – Plain porridge, Branflakes, Shredded for example, Frosties, Sugar Puffs, wheat, Shreddies, plain Special K, Crunchy Nut Cornflakes. Oatbix or Weatabix. Sweet biscuits including chocolate or Plain biscuits – for example digestive, cream-filled, shortbread, cakes and tea biscuits, crackers, oatcakes, small buns. scones, pancakes or crumpets. Adapted with kind permission from NHS Lanarkshire 6 Your notes 7 All of our publications are available in different languages, larger print, braille (English only), audio tape or another format of your choice. 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Name ______________________________________________________ Address ______________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________ Comment ______________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________ Last reviewed: January 2017 Leaflet reference: ND14-008-CC/PIL17-0230 .