Most of you are aware that I am pregnant with our second baby. Although I would say that I went against the flow when I was pregnant with Julian, I have learned so much more since having him, which means that I am going even more against the flow this time around. We were really hoping to have a home birth with this baby, but it just did not work out that way. This pregnancy I am seeking the care of the local midwifery practice, following a fairly strict diet and regularly exercising. I am not consenting to any of the typical prenatal tests that are routine for prenatal care. The reason for this is a post in and of itself, but it is sufficient to say that I have done my own research and come to the decisions that we have made through prayer and careful study. For the most part, the midwives I am seeing have been accommodating to my desires. The exception to that lies with the Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT).
According to the Mayo Clinic, The OGTT is an oral test most commonly administered during pregnancy that measures the body’s response to sugar. This test is done in order to observe abnormalities in the way your body handles glucose after a meal. Since there is not way to control what an individual eats, the medical community has adopted the standard of care to have women drink Glucola in order to test their blood sugar levels. According to the ACOG (American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology), women at risk for gestational diabetes tend to present the following:
- are older than 25 years
- are overweight
- have had gestational diabetes before
- have had a very large baby
- have a close relative with diabetes
- have had a stillbirth in a previous pregnancy
- are African American, American Indian, Asian American, Hispanic, Latina, or Pacific Islander
The standard of care at the practice that I attend is to have pregnant women take the one hour GTT at twelve weeks and twenty-eight weeks. I declined the test at twelve weeks with no issues from my midwives. Since then, however, they have been pressuring me to take the test at twenty-eight weeks. I am planning on continuing to refuse the test given that I meet none of the risk factors. This has not seemed to be enough for my midwives to let up on the pressure they are putting on me to take the test, so I set out to find out exactly what is in the Glucola. We eat a clean diet (I would say 85-90% of the time), free of GMO’s, food dyes and factory farmed meat and dairy products, among other things. We don’t eat perfect (as evidenced by the piece of pizza I bought at the mall on Friday!), but even when I deviate from our norm, I make sure that there are not any GMO’s or food dyes in what I am going to eat. Given that the Glucola is BRIGHT orange, I figured there would be something in there that I did not want to put in my body and I was right.
In a bottle of the 50 mL Glucola solution, the following is found: water, dextrose, natural flavoring, citric acid, sodium benzoate, FD&C yellow 6 and FD&C red 40. Chemical cocktail, if there ever was one! Both dextrose and citric acid are often derived from corn, which, in the US, is 88% infiltrated by GMO crops. Natural flavoring can literally mean anything, including MSG. Sodium benzoate is a preservative, which has been linked to all sorts of diseases ranging from Parkinson’s to leukemia. Both FD&C red 40 and FD&C yellow 6 contain known carcinogens and FD&C red 40 has been linked to DNA damage in rats.
Needless to say, after doing this research, I will continue to decline the OGTT at my midwive’s office. While I cannot say that this is the best choice for you to make, I know that I am making the right, informed choice for the health of myself and my unborn child.
PS. Don’t forget about the AWESOME homemaking bundle sale going on this week! Check out this post for the full details or simply click the button below to purchase the bundle.
Ugghh — I can’t believe that they think this is good for pregnant women to drink! I did it with my first two pregnancies but am not doing this pregnancy. I’m curious why the homebirth won’t work out? Is no one available? We’re planning a homebirth with our baby that’s due in April
.
I know, LaNae! Home birth is not going to work out for us this time because the only home birth midwife in the Champaign area was already booked up by the time we discovered we were expecting again. She mainly services the Amish communities near Tuscola and only keeps two spots open per month for non-Amish clients. We are moving back to Peoria in May, so hopefully next baby we can do a home birth!
There are some home birth midwives in the Indianapolis area that will travel to C-U I have heard.
Thanks, Anna! We are going to to stick with a natural hospital birth this time. We can’t afford to pay the fees for a home birth midwife right now.
Have you asked your midwives about doing a glucose blood test after fasting for 8 hours. This would typically mean not eating after dinner and waiting to have breakfast until after your appt. I did this with my 2nd and 3rd pregnancies and my mainstream OB was perfectly happy with it. It gave him the test results that he was looking for to prove that I didn’t have GD and it allowed me to refuse to drink that nasty gluscose junk. I don’t know why more people don’t think of this option. In my opinion it’s even better than eating something else that also full of sugar.
Thanks for this suggestion, Allyson! What I ended up doing was testing my blood sugar levels with a glucometer at home 4 times a day for a month. This satisfied my midwives. In the future, I think I will just decline the test altogether, but I was not willing to put up a huge fight this time.
I have heard that some people do a GTT with an alternative challenge – something with a similar sugar content that you are comfortable eating. For example, I know that some people have done jellybeans (likely not much better unless you buy very specific brands). I wonder if you could make your own sugar drink with organic cane sugar and water that would have a similar effect? It would probably suck to drink, but you could do it. Or, you could talk to them about testing your own sugar for 1-2 weeks after every meal (just make sure you’re eating your norm and I would be SURE to have at least one “normal cheat” in there to be sure they are still ok for you). Just thoughts. I personally won’t decline the GTT because I tend to run borderline and I’m not THAT clean of an eater anyway, so one more nasty drink won’t make that much difference…
Thanks for your thoughts!
So interesting to see a post on this (found you via a link from Modern Alternative Pregnancy)! I actually had my glucose test done last month, but used fruit juice instead of of the glucola. This is my first pregnancy, and I’ve been a lot more timid than I would like about refusing tests to my midwives. I have been refusing the tests we don’t want to do, but I feel much shyer about doing so than I’d expected to. They handed me the glucola at the very end of my November appointment and said to drink it an hour before my December appointment. I didn’t think to say anything at the time, but when I got home and read the ingredients, I had the same thoughts you did. I couldn’t believe they were expecting a pregnant woman to drink something like that!
I asked a couple friends that had done or not done the test before (most decided to forego the test, but had to accept being treated as if they had GD- daily blood sugar testing, etc), and I tried to find some information online about alternatives. I finally just called my birth center and explained that I don’t consume artificial coloring and corn syrup in my regular diet, and couldn’t justify doing so just for this test. They sounded like they hadn’t heard the objection very often, but one midwife did say she’d heard of using Welch’s 100% grape juice as a substitute (as long as it added up to 50g of sugar). I don’t drink fruit juices often at all, and especially not very sweet ones from concentrate, but I appreciated them being willing to work with me. I stressed out a little bit over the test, and I felt very gross drinking that much sugar at once (even if it was from juice), but I made sure to start the morning of the test with lots of fats and some protein, took extra cod liver oil, said a prayer, and passed with flying colors.
Long story short- if it makes your midwives really uncomfortable to not administer the test, and you’re comfortable with drinking a little juice, maybe ask them about alternatives? It’s so funny to me that even at a natural birthing center, it’s such a struggle to have a natural pregnancy…
It is interesting, isn’t it, that among practitioners that I chose because of their bent towards natural pregnancy I am still pressured to drink something like this. I will be talking to my midwives about alternatives.
Ahhh. Yes, the drink of death. That is my own name for it. I had to take it once befroe I was ever near pregnant. I was not eating a very exquisite diet and I still got sick for 3 days. Several years later I got pregnant and was so sick they forced it on me. I neither knew better nor had brain power to think to refuse and did it at 12 weeks. I was sick for 3 days again. Read: extra sick bc I was already awfully sick.) Then I stupidly consented to o it at 28 weeks.
Baby number 2 came along and I refused. The midwife I was working with was under hospital rules so she couldn’t just let me go. However, i did my research and bargained to do 26 Brachs Jelly Beans. That was gross, but honestly, way!!! better than Glucola.
In the future? I will flatly refuse. I even meet some of the criteria for risk. Alas, my numbers are always low and I always get sick which is not so helpful. My future midwife already knows this. i would rather eat like I am diabetic than test to find out.
And I personally wont do the Truckers breakfast at IHOP bc I am gluten free and they don’t have GF pancakes here.
Drink of Death…I love it!
I have a severe allergy to red dye. I was able to find an alternative diet to eat on the morning of the glucose test. It consisted of oatmeal with brown sugar and a few other things. I think OJ was a part of it. It kept me eating the foods that I would normally eat and leaving out the additives that we avoid like the plague. See if the midwives would be amenable to that.
Of course I don’t wish I had a food allergy, but that would be much easier to say than explaining that I just don’t wish to put that in my body!
Of course I don’t wish I had a food allergy and I am am sorry for those that do, but that would be much easier to say than trying to explain that I just don’t want to put that in my body!
My midwives had me do a natural challenge. I fasted for four hours then ate toast with jelly, eggs and some cheese. All organic.
Thanks for your thoughts! I will be talking with my midwives about alternatives.
For anyone reading this, ask your midwives and/or doctors if they’d be willing to offer an alternative. I was set on refusing Glucola or anything full of pure sugar and chemicals since before conception, and if that meant skipping the glucose test altogether, then so be it. My midwife said I could easily just eat one ripe banana and 8oz orange juice with a no-carb, high protein breakfast (something I already do regularly) and have my blood drawn two hours later. My numbers were perfect, and I felt so much better about what I ingested.
Thanks for your thoughts! That would be a perfect compromise. I am not opposed to having my blood tested, just the method by which they want me to do it!
I am just TTC #4 and I asked the OB in advance if she was open to an alternative and she said yes…we could just monitor blood sugar over several days without drinking the Orange Drink of Death.
Good for you! It is important to be proactive in these kind of situations.
yes, ask about an alternative! They said I could do sugary juice (I know, not much better) if I wasn’t comfortable with the solution.
Sugary juice would not be ideal, but perhaps better than the Glucola!
I also refused and my practice was ready to discharge me as a patient. I ended up doing home monitoring every am and after one meal a day for a week. Never tested high despite having multiple “risk” factors. I did end up switching providers due to issues I had with a new hire MW.
My practice has threatened to turn my care over to the OBs since they cannot legally discharge me. I am not sure what they think that will accomplish…an OB is not going to make me do anything I don’t want to do either!
Have you considered an unassisted homebirth?
My husband is not comfortable with that, so it isn’t an option for us. We are praying that next time around we will be in a position to have a midwife assisted homebirth.
My midwife allowed me to do the test differently. She didn’t want me to drink the chem concoction either! I was able to eat a certain breakfast with x amount of calories before the test and show up at the clinic exactly an hour later ( i may have had to eat a handfull of skittles like 30 min. before too) then to have the blood drawn. My midwife had research showing that this form of testing actually showed better results than drinking the glucola.
That is a knowledgable midwife! Although, I still would not have been comfortable eating the skittles.
I drank that drink with my first, but with my second and this pregnancy my midwife has her clients eat the 50 gram carbohydrate breakfast. Basically, 4oz unsweetened juice, 2 eggs, 2 slices of whole grain toast with 1 tsp of butter (or 1 slice with 1 tsp butter and 1 cup unsweetened dry cereal),and 8oz of milk. I’d definitely be asking your midwives if they’d allow you an alternative to the glucola drink!
have you ever thought that maybe, just maybe, there is a standard because it will be easier on your doctor to monitor all his/her patients based on something that he/she can use as a standard? As someone who is in the medical profession and who is also a mom AND who is also an advocate for health, it can be difficult to monitor each patient when one patient eats skittles, the other drinks cane juice, the other eats a banana, etc. If you are not drinking the ingredients in the DEATHLY drink glucola everyday or even once a year, it is not going to kill you. Remember that our bodies are stronger than we think, we have a system that can rid our bodies of things that are not good for the blood…it’s called the urinary system.
Thanks for your thoughts! However, I am consumer of what my midwives have to offer and I am not just a number to be monitored in the way that is easiest for them. I encourage women to be informed advocates for themselves and not just sit back and take what they are told they “have” to do.
So they create a more natural standard. Problem solved.
There is no reason for this garbage to be ingested, and drinking carcinogens because it’s “easier” is a pretty poor argument.
I would agree, Wendy! Easier for the doctor/midwife, perhaps, but my goal is not to make their life easier it is to do the best I can to make good decisions with the information that I have.
I’m not sure you understood what she was saying. It’s not merely that it’s arbitrarily “easier” for the doc (as if they’re lazy), but as anonymous said, that it’s a reference standard. This is important for a few reasons, not the least of which is that you’re able to more accurately judge what is happening in the body, against other human beings who have taken exactly the same test. Without a standard, the data can be less meaningful to the doc, and could possibly alter the data’s relevance. There are many kinds of sugars, and not all of them get absorbed in the body in the same way, or at the same speed. Now, I’m not even saying that accurate results can’t be obtained from taking something else, but even if all your research against this obviously unpleasant “drink” was gleaned from PubMed (which, unless you have a subscription, all you’d get are the abstracts), about half of that information is questionable, and researchers understand this. It’s always better to be informed, but information isn’t enough. One must know how to interpret what one has been informed of, and that does take a little experience.
I agree that they could probably come up with a better, healthier standard, but honestly, taking this once during pregnancy isn’t going to negatively affect your outcome in any way. The body is designed to dispense with things it doesn’t need. It’s why we urinate and defecate – that’s the stuff we don’t need, even though we ingested it. One doesn’t stop doing that even if you eat the purest foods on the planet.
Thanks for your thoughts, Neil! A few thoughts of my own…all of my information did not come from PubMed, but even if it did, I do have full access since my husband is a medical student. Although I am fully capable of thinking and interpreting information for myself, he does help me better understand medical terminology that I am not familiar with. I don’t need letters behind my name to be able to interpret information for myself. I also do not agree with the line of thinking that “taking this once during pregnancy isn’t going to negatively affect your outcome in any way”. There is new research showing that one dose of antibiotics can cause irreparable damage to the body. Anything you put in or on your body, regardless of how many times you do it, will impact and affect your body in some way.
Faith, my wife is a physician. A high-risk OB in fact, who also has a PhD in pharmacology. She studies the effect of drugs that women are currently taking on their bodies, because since the thalidomide tragedy, almost no research has been done on what drugs do to women’s bodies. And since women take drugs of every kind, even while pregnant, this might be pretty important. I’ve read countless medical papers over the years on a myriad of subjects, some OB, and some not (because she has free access to PubMed too) and can plenty think for myself as well, but one thing I’ve realized is that context is everything, and even then, the answers aren’t always so clear. Researchers themselves, when they read papers, aren’t always sure what’s good data and what’s bad data. There is so much they don’t know about how the body works, or why it does what it does. Taking control of your own health is a very good thing. It’s empowering, and nobody is ever going to be a better advocate for your health than you. But you (and I) largely do not possess the proper context to know what degree of relevance or importance whatever we’ve read actually has.
What I hear you saying, and I come across this a lot (especially where I live on the Left Coast), is that you’re rejecting the treatment of pregnancy as it is currently practiced in the West, which basically treats pregnancy like a disease. And for the most part, I agree with you (and so would my wife). Pregnancy is a very normal part of human existence, and the medicalization of it has removed some of the real beauty of it. But remember this: it is only the in the last 50 years or so that mortality for rates went from (at best) 1 in 100 maternal deaths (in some places here in the US, and currently in some parts of the world, it’s 1 in 7), to 1 in 10,000 maternal deaths. This isn’t because science has been grossly wrong. Pregnancy, even as a very normal function of the human body, has throughout human history been a very risky event. It is pretty much the riskiest thing a human body is designed to do. And it doesn’t always end well. It’s interesting to me that you don’t want to drink the Glucola, but
I’m not making an argument that you should just listen to your docs, no matter what. What I am saying is: they do have a wider context of knowledge. Simply because things have gone right for you and many others, doesn’t mean it always does. That’s inferring a truth via anecdotal evidence. Humility is the recognition that you don’t always know everything, and if you trust your physicians/midwives/doulas, then there are some things that you should listen to them about. Drinking Glucola may not be one of those things, but I’m using it as an example for the sake of argument. Protocols have been developed over the years precisely because people have made mistakes, and when it comes to pregnancy, those mistakes, though generally very rare, can often be disproportionately devastating relative to their frequency.
I say all this, not to scare you (or anyone), but because what I’m hearing in the tone of your post and your comments from this end, is a very empowered person, but not as contextually informed. Just one example: you used the example of one dose of antibiotics as being able to cause “irreparable damage to the body”, but without giving the context of what kind of antibiotics, or under what circumstances, in what dosage, etc, etc, and yet comparing that to a dose of straight 50ml of glucose (which is less sugar than half a soda), with miniscule trace amounts of food colorings that cause DNA damage in rats when administered in a dose of equivalent to the potentcy of rat poison (I went and looked at the papers), that if you have grown up in America, you have undoubtedly consumed in much larger quantities over time from your earliest youth (eating hot dogs, drinking soda, etc) until you consciously changed your diet to be more natural and healthy.
I think Glucola is pretty disgusting myself, but I wouldn’t switch midwives over it, that’s all I’m saying. Knowledge is important, but it’s not meaningful without context.
I agree with you. As it happens, I had to take my GD test this morning. I’ve always hated ‘orange drink’, even as a kid (it always gives me a weird sore throat); I don’t like sugary drinks in general and I thought the ingredients in Glucola sounded horrible. But I drank it down thinking the same as you: When everyone drinks the same stuff, the test results can be more standardized, so it’s easier for my doctor to determine whether I have a problem. And as a 43-year-old pregnant with my first child, I think it’s extra-important for me to be easily assessed. One 10-ounce bottle of the stuff isn’t going to kill me or anyone else.
Faith, I didn’t know what is in the Glucola drink, but if I have another baby, I’m going to refuse the GD testing, too. I was diagnosed with it in my second pregnancy, with an extremely borderline “high”. There are actually two different top number limits, and since my docs office chose the lower, I “had” gestational diabetes. But if I went to a doc who used the higher of the two limits, I wouldnt have had it. I continued to eat just the same as before (Dr. Brewer’s pregnancy diet), but with regular blood sugar testing and lots of added stress in my life. I never had a high number, so I was not convinced that I actually had GD. My pregnancy ended with preeclampsia at 32 weeks, as did my first pregnancy, actually. But if we try a third time, I going to decline the GD test and just watch for symptoms and periodically check my own blood sugar levels. I don’t need the added stress of micromanagement!
Very frustrating! I can imagine the added stress did not help your pregnancy at all.
My midwife is testing my sugars for a full week using the little home testing strips. I just have to eat a regular breakfast then test my blood sugar. She will look at the week’s results and go from there. I am overweight and planning a home birth, so I don’t want to decline the testing in its entirety.
That is a very reasonable alternative, Amy! I am not advocating declining the testing all together, but finding an alternative to the standard of care.
Good for you for standing your ground!! I hadn’t thought too much about the Glucose test stuff they have you drink. I did it with my first 4 yrs ago, and began questioning with this pregnancy. I’ve switched providers just in time cuz my OB Dr was going to have me do the test on Friday this week, saying it was required by the hospital. Thank goodness my midwife team is against this sort of testing. Basically, a sugar intolerance would be obvious and therefore, no need to drink a chemical cocktail to test that. Nevertheless, thank you for posting and sharing your experience and research!
Thanks, Roxanne! I am actually choosing to switch care providers as my current team of midwives is not backing down nor are they willing to give me a reasonable alternative.
My midwife wanted me to see if I could find a glucometer and test my sugars at home for a week and then go from there. I was unable to find one instead we drew blood and she did the AC1 test. It can see a pattern for the last 2-3 months and the results came back that I was at a decreased risk for diabetes so that is checked off and we don’t have to go any further. She mentioned the alternative of eating really sugary etc. but we found this way to be the best way to go as I didn’t want to eat a super high sugary meal for the sake of getting blood drawn.
Good for you!I love hearing about other women taking their care into their own hands.
My midwives just gave me the Welches 100% grape juice – passed with flying colors!
That would be a reasonable alternative!
Well done!
Because think, 50ml SUGAR? What healthy pregnant mother eats or drinks FIFTY mililiters pure sugar in one shot?! I hardly ever take any kind of refined sugars, how is this representative of how my body works?! My diet is not my neighbour’s. I never drink sodas, nor cookies, nor sweets, the only -ose I get is fructose. My body would collapse if I ate that goo!
My thoughts exactly, Emily!
I don’t get what the big deal is. I live in Canada, and we don’t do the test at all unless there is a reason for it. I’ve had 5 kids, and not once was I even asked to do this test! So unnecessary.
It is very unnecessary to do across the board, Kim. Like you said, if a woman is presenting symptoms than perhaps it should be considered, but to subject every woman to the test without exception is not necessary.
Just ask to take a fasting A1c or fructosamine test. Both are blood tests and way more accurate than a glucose drink or if your not into that, they also have figured a Mc Donalds breakfast as an alternative according to Kaiser. lol
Thanks for the thoughts!
I’m diabetic so this is the regular protocol for diabetics. They’ve never offered that icky drink, but you do have to get your blood taken. So much more straight forward to.
Oh my goodness, this is frustrating! As a pregnant woman, and also an internal medicine doctor, I must say that you should be thanking your midwives for not firing you from their practice already! You mention eating a slice of pizza at the mall – I can guarantee there are more artificial chemicals in that than Glucola! How much of your/their time have you already wasted with this shenanigans? Just do the test and move on with your life!
Thanks for your thoughts! The slice of pizza I ate at the mall was free of all preservatives, food dyes and soy. I check ingredients whenever I eat anything, even if it going to be a compromise food. I would hope that as a doctor you would be willing to work with your patients needs and desires and not just treat them as a number requiring them to submit to your standard of care.
I delivered my first daughter in Champaign (Urbana, actually @ Carle) with the midwives. If you’re using the same practice, all I can say is that the hospital must have them in a vise. I don’t remember them being that nuts over these things and I DID have GD. I really hope they give you an alternative and that they honor your right to refuse any testing/procedure.
Very interesting to hear, Nikki! The midwives that are pressuring me are the Carle midwives. Unfortunately, they are not willing to back down and offer me a reasonable alternative, so I am transferring to the Christie Clinic midwives.
I am a home birth midwife, a CPM, and in the absence of risk factors or a family history of risk factors, I’m totally comfortable with clients declining. And it’s their choice anyway, were I not comfortable.
That is great to hear, Susan! I have a few friends who have had home births and if they wanted the usual pregnancy tests they had to go to their OB/GYN office to get them. From what I understand, home birth midwifery is MUCH more hands off.
Faith, in many ways it is hands off with decisions (and that responsibility) resting with parents. Of course, when a clearly concerning situation or signs of risk are involved, I find that unbiased education and information along generally leaves us on the same page. If I think parents are taking a risk with a decision that I can’t live with, I respectfully decline to participate as their midwife, rather than try to coerce them toward my best judgement. The issue of gestational diabetes is controversial. And so are the methods of testing. I’ve had great results with test following a breakfast mentioned in an earlier comment to weed out people moving in that direction, with diet and exercise improving their blood work considerably, going on to normalcy again.
Hi Faith, I have been reading your blog fairly often. While I agree with you on maintaining a healthy diet, I want you to understand that our bodies have a mind of their own…due to genetic predisposition, stress, etc we cannot make our bodies be disease free just by a healthy diet. Please dont take my comments to be combative, because I do believe a healthy natural diet is a great benefit, but I cannot “not have” Or cure my MS by simply eating well. I can improve my prognosis, but not cure it. The same goes for my boys with MD because it is a chromosomal issue. Diabetes is the same type of disease, very often lying dormant with no signs or symptoms until it is way over the top and has already caused damage to your body from nerves to heart and everything in between, so to those commenting that they will just watch for symptoms this is not realistic. Yes, for centuries we have had natural childbirth with no intervention, but with high mortality rates for child and mamma to show for it. Modern medicine, technology, whether we like it or not has had a role in decreasing that mortality rate. I myself would have 2 dead sons if not for monitoring and surgical intervention during childbirth. I do think modern medicine has gone overboard with medications, but there are also several instances where mainstream medications are needed…for example insulin for diabetics. You and your hubby’s thoughts might change in about 5 years when he graduates from med school after all the hard work and sacrifice you both put in when someone with no medical training except Internet research starts questioning you. I totally agree that we ourselves know our body the best, but we need to work on meshing that knowledge with the trained professionals knowledge to work together not antagonize each other. For example, I am currently not taking any pharmaceutical drugs for my MS much to the dislike of my neurologist, but I am having regular checkups, and taking vitamin d with calcium at his recommendation. Like I said, just expressing my opinion from years of experience in the health field, being a mamma, and an unavoidable chronic disease sufferer. Thanks for letting me express my opinion.
Thanks for your thoughts, Sue! I appreciate your insight. I want to make sure it is clear that I am NOT opposed to being tested for gestational diabetes. I am, however, opposed to being tested for it by drinking Glucola. I know there are alternatives to that and I am willing to comply with those, within reason (I would not be willing to eat a meal at McDonalds in lieu of the Glucola, but would be willing to submit to glucometer testing for a certain period of time). The midwives I currently see are not willing to work with me and offer me a reasonable alternative. I am transferring to a new practice tomorrow that is willing to offer me (and other patients) an alternative to drinking Glucola. My point in writing this was to make women aware of what is in the drink that is the standard of care for testing pregnant women for gestational diabetes. If after being informed of what is in it, you are still comfortable drinking it, great! I just want to be as informed as possible in every decision that I make and I enjoy sharing that information with others so they can make informed decisions as well.
I understand your rationale, and can appreciate the fact that there are other ways and methods to achieving your goal. I angered my OB when I was pregnant because I didn’t want to have the blood test for Downs Syndrome, because I would not have under any circumstance have terminated my pregnancy, so why waste time and money on testing for it. But testing for Diabetes is a different story as you pointed out. See we can have a healthy debate without being nasty
No nasty debates here!
I hate the sugar shock reaction that my body gets after taking this test. It is also so easy to fail. My midwives let me do a fasting test where I fasted all night then had my blood drawn in the morning. I went home, ate a low sugar breakfast, and then had my blood drawn again. It was more of a hassle, but I didn’t have to drink anything nasty or have a sugar crash.
It is more of a hassle, but worth it! I just started my 2 weeks of blood sugar testing at home. Certainly not fun to have to prick my finger 4 times a day, but better than drinking the Glucola.
I have reactive hypoglycemia….which means any time I eat sugar/carbs, I overproduce insulin, which causes my blood sugar to crash. The last time I did a 3hr gtt (at the endocrinologists office), they let me walk out with a blood sugar of about 45, and ready to collapse. Never again. Last pregnancy and this one, midwives are all comfortable with taking readings from my meter instead. Ingreds aside, I would go off and birth alone in the woods before I would EVER subject my body and my baby to that stuff again. Stand your ground, my dear…you will win this. It is immoral for this to be forced on women!
Thanks, Becca! I ended up having to switch providers because I would not back down on this issue. My new midwife is having me test my blood sugar for two weeks at home. Thanks for your encouragement!
I totally agree; I really wish I’d never put that nasty drink into my body my last 2 pregnancies. With my first, I failed the 1-hour test but passed the 3-hour (had to drink twice as much with that one!); with my second, I failed both. I was miserably sick each time I had the drink, and the nurse said if I threw up I’d have to start from scratch until I kept it down. The last time, I asked about the jellybeans, and even brought a research article on the subject. The OB was open to it until he talked with the head of the group they were under, and then said because the study was over 10 years old they would not allow jellybeans and I would have to drink the Glucola. So I was diabetic my second pregnancy. The diet and 4x a day finger-pricks were not NEARLY as bad as the drink. I don’t know what to do the next time. I know I will refuse the drink, but I don’t know if I can try to do the jellybeans or juice and see if they’ll allow it next time, or if I should just assume I’m diabetic and follow the diet. Anyone know of a more recent research study on alternatives to the Glucola? (To this day I can’t even hear that word or see an orange drink without wanting to puke.)
Thanks for your thoughts, Shae! The midwives I am seeing now (I switched from my original midwife group that was giving me trouble) are allowing me to do a 2 week glucometer testing in lieu of the 1 hour Glucola test. I have to test my blood sugar four times a day (waking and 2 hours after each meal). I am thankful to have this alternative! Perhaps your OB will allow you to do that?
Pingback: Oral Glucose Tolerance Test: What Happened? | Storms Stories
For this pregnancy (my 5th), I have chosen to monitor and record my blood glucose levels 3x a day for a week. My midwife provided the monitor, since many of her patients have the same objections to the glucose test. If you decide to do this and your midwife doesn’t provide a monitor, the Target (Up & Up brand) is an inexpensive and easy to use option. Best wishes on your pregnancy!
Thanks for the tip, Amber! I ended up doing something very similar, although I had to test my blood sugar 4 times a day for a month.
Our family eats the same way you do, and I have given thought to the glucose tolerance test. I’ve been fortunate to not have taken the test, but I like Amber’s tip!