Failed One Hour Glucose Test - Advice

[mlk]

HI everyone, I am just over 19 weeks pregnant and my OB sent me for an early GTT because I have thyroid problems and he said it is often linked with GD.

So I have just found out that I failed the one hour test. The cut off was 7.8 and I got 8.3. For two days before the test, I did not eat carbs or sugar and the morning of the test (I was told it was non-fasting) I ate scrambled eggs only and had the test about 2.5 hours later. Could this have an impact on the results?

So far baby is measuring average, and up to 12 weeks I had not put on any weight despite being hungry all day. Even at 19 weeks I do not appear to have put on much weight, although I am not weighed. I have a fairly good diet but am slightly overweight but in proportion.

I am so worried about failing the two hour test.

Any advice or people's experience would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Haven]

Oh MLK that stinks, I'm sorry!

No advice here, I just wanted to say I hope you pass the next screening.

 

[fleur-de-lis]

For how many days from now is the 2 hour test scheduled?

(For the US readers, her doc uses a pass of 140mg/dl and she scored a 149. MLK, don't fret yet. And yes, what you eat in the days leading up to the test can have an impact on the results.)

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Hi,

Sorry you failed the test. I know how stressful it can be. I failed it and was in complete shock. The last news I expected my midwife to call me about was possibly having gestational diabetes.

My advice is go back to what you regularly eat. You need to know if you're having blood sugar issues and you don't want to alter your diet to make you pass. And, FWIW, your sugar level score was a lot lower than mine, so I wouldn't worry at this point, but I would double check about the fasting as usually, you're not suppose to eat after a certain time the night before and then get the test done first thing in the morning before eating.

 

[Haven]

For how many days from now is the 2 hour test scheduled?

(For the US readers, her doc uses a pass of 140mg/dl and she scored a 149. MLK, don't fret yet. And yes, what you eat in the days leading up to the test can have an impact on the results.)

Thank you for the numbers!
I didn't know the food I ate in the days leading up to the test could affect the results. I ate a huge bowl of ice cream with caramel syrup at 10 PM the night before my test. My one-hour result was 132, the two-hour result was 77.

I know my doctor's office does the 2-hour with everyone because they feel too many people get false positives with the one-hour, so hopefully that's what happened with you, mlk!

 

[pancake]

MLK, I'm sorry you had an abnormal result on your glucose challenge. I have to say, though, that I am always a bit puzzled by people who try everything possible in the days prior "not to fail" a GTT or GCT. If you have impaired glucose tolerance or gestational diabetes, don't you want to know? I mean, obviously nobody wants GD, but if it's there, better to know than to not know. At least then whatever is required can be done, to best ensure the health of you and your baby. If you're not going to limit your carb intake or make permanent, lasting changes to your diet, then I don't see the point of doing it just to try and achieve a normal result on the test, because whatever impaired glucose handling you have is going to remain for the rest of your pregnancy.

(FWIW, I believe the current evidence is still that a preparatory diet, even though it is recommended, makes no significant difference to OGTT results or the diagnosis of gestational diabetes)

The GCT is a screening test. It is NOT meant to be fasting. The OGTT is the diagnostic test and it IS meant to be fasting.

 

[monkeyprincess]

MLK, sorry that must be frustrating, but I do agree with Pancake that there is no sense in trying to change up your diet just to try to pass the test. I would just follow your doctor's fasting instructions and hope for the best. I was paranoid I would fail the test, and now I'm not really sure why because, according to my doctor, in most cases, you do not have to have a super restrictive diet. You just need to watch the timing and combination of carbs and proteins, etc., which is a healthier way of eating anyway. For what it's worth, I went on somewhat of a sugar binge the night before the test. DH bought some candy the night before, and I totally went to town on it and I ate a big dinner too. So bad, but I still passed the test the next morning. I really do think that is evidence that it is just how your body processes the glucose and not what you eat or don't eat before taking the test that determines the outcome. Just my two thoughts anyway. Hopefully, you will pass the next test and not have to worry about it.

 

[fleur-de-lis]

Hi MLK,

Hopefully your doctor already told you to do the following three things before your upcoming test:

1. eat 150 carbs a day for each of the three days before the test, divided fairly evenly among meals;
2. fast 8-12 hours before test;
3. hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.

So, why do doctors say to do these things before the test, when it seems at first glance like we're trying to beat the system? The reasoning is that the human being is a remarkable biological machine. A healthy body will learn to produce just as much insulin as it needs to handle the blood sugar it is likely to encounter in a typical day-- not more, not less. There was an interesting study a while back (the abstract of which is available on the NIH site to the public) where adults who followed a low-carb lifestyle were given a glucose challenge test; fully 73% of the low-carb people taking the screening test failed it. On follow-up testing, however, not a single person in the sample had diabetes! Hemoglobin A1C values were great, fasting #s were in range, and most importantly when they had the low-carb group follow the normal carb regime guidelines for as little as 3 days, upon retesting the values were in normal range! Thus, if (a) a well-functioning human body is going to respond with an insulin response in line with the diet it has seen in the last few days, and (b) the values the determiners have decided are "normal" are based on the assumption that the test-takers are following a "normal" diet, then it behooves test-takers to (c) eat in the days leading up to the test in the way that primes her body's insulin response to normal.

When I posted a short version of this on the pregnancy board for someone else a while back, it became evident that adding some source material would be a good thing, so here goes:

1. The 150g carb for three days before test in order to avoid false positives, from NIH:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/e...ez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

2. Fasting for 8-12 hours before oral glucose test, from the Mayo Clinic:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/prediabetes/DS00624/DSECTION=tests-and-diagnosis
3. Dehydration-- a common issue with pregnant women--and its impact on blood glucose levels, as explained by livestrong:
http://www.livestrong.com/article/239458-how-does-dehydration-affect-blood-glucose-levels/




MLK, your numbers indicate you failed the screen by only a little bit, and it also appears that your diet might not have been primed (which is a hassle not typically done for the screen, but is done for the follow-up test). Follow the protocols above for your re-test and see how the numbers come in-- you may very well be pleasantly surprised!

 

[Dreamer_D]

False positives on the 1 hour screen are very high! Go to the two hour test and don't worry about anything until those results come back.

 

[missrachelk]

Hi MLK - don't fret! FDL posted back when I was taking my tests - I also had my first 1 hour test early due to my PCOS and passed it, but still had to repeat later in the pregnancy. Even without reading all of the source material, it totally makes sense to me to get the body prepared for the test by eating carbs, not avoiding them. So I would do that / go back to your usual diet and most of all don't stress! Stress and the stress hormones definitely affect the rest of the body so just try not to worry and be calm the day of the test.

The day of my second test for example, I stood backward on the scale so I wouldn't have my weight on my mind while I was being tested.

And the thought that's been shared here that if there is something going on, regardless of what you do, the test will come back positive - which is the whole objective!

 

[mlk]

Thanks everyone for your responses, it has certainly made me stress less. Don't get me wrong I was never wanting to cheat the test or do anything which may mean I pass even though I shouldn't I guess I didn't eat carbs for the days before because I thought it may give a false positive. From what has been posted maybe that's what ended up happening!

All the ladies here on ps are so full of information and support.

I do the 2 hour gtt next Saturday as I cannot keep taking time off work so my obs office is sending me all the prep info but the midwife did say I had to load up on the carbs for 3 days before and then fast the night before.

Here's hoping I pass this one. Thanks again ladies

 

[asscherisme]

Thanks everyone for your responses, it has certainly made me stress less. Don't get me wrong I was never wanting to cheat the test or do anything which may mean I pass even though I shouldn't I guess I didn't eat carbs for the days before because I thought it may give a false positive. From what has been posted maybe that's what ended up happening!

All the ladies here on ps are so full of information and support.

I do the 2 hour gtt next Saturday as I cannot keep taking time off work so my obs office is sending me all the prep info but the midwife did say I had to load up on the carbs for 3 days before and then fast the night before.

Here's hoping I pass this one. Thanks again ladies

I failed the one hour with my 4th baby. And when I went for the second test (2 hour I think, its been 8 years) I passed by a wide margin.

I hope you pass the second test.