During pregnancy, a woman goes through a lot of changes. Some are obvious and visible like the baby bump, morning sickness, weight gain and swollen ankles. But pregnancy can also change some major bodily functions as the baby grows inside the womb.
One of these changes is metabolism. Metabolism is the way our body uses fats, sugars, proteins to provide energy to the cells, tissues and organs to ensure proper functioning of the body. Now during pregnancy, your body has to provide energy to you as well as the new life that is growing inside of you.
To understand more about this, OnlyMyHealth spoke to Dr Sushma Tomar, Consultant – Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, Fortis Hospital Kalayan.
Metabolic Changes During Pregnancy
Talking about metabolic changes during pregnancy, Dr Tomar said, “A female body goes through a lot of changes during pregnancy. As the pregnancy progresses, the nutrition gets absorbed in the bloodstream and reaches the placenta. The umbilical cord passes the nutrients further from the placenta to the blood vessels that flow from umbilical cord to baby. In the first two trimesters, fat storage of the body increases.”
The Dr further said, “As the fat storage of the body increases, significant changes in metabolism occur as well.”
Studies say pregnant women accumulate fat early in her pregnancy and burn it later as an energy source to make sure her own energy needs are met. Thus, a pregnant woman may burn fat more than ever during the final 13 weeks of her pregnancy.
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What Can Metabolism Cause?
Talking about metabolic changes in pregnancy, Dr Tomar said, “During pregnancy, some women can experience an increase in insulin sensitivity and may lead to spikes in blood sugar levels. In rare cases that might lead to gestational diabetes. But these cases are very rare and can occur after the 5th month of pregnancy.”
During glucose consumption in the blood might fluctuate but it can be taken care of through diet. But in rarest of rare cases, glucose levels spike during pregnancy leading to gestational diabetes.
Measures And Precautions
According to Dr Tomar, if high risk pregnancy is identified, the mothers are taken care of by providing supplements to maintain the sugar levels. A diet plan made by a dietician is provided to the mothers with high risk pregnancies.
While talking about how the high risk pregnancies are identified, Dr Tomar said, “As there is no measurement to determine the metabolism, high risk pregnancies are identified. Firstly, all the routine tests are done. After that, family history and risk factors are noted and accordingly diet changes are advised.”
Dr Tomar further said, “Apart from managing high blood sugar levels, steps to control blood pressure are also taken when it comes to high risk pregnancies. If a woman is found to be pre-pregnancy hypertensive, extra care is taken to ensure a safe pregnancy.”
(Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. We advise you to contact your doctor in case you face any problems during your pregnancy.)
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