Lower daily carbohydrate consumption than recommended by the Institute of Medicine is common among women with type 2 diabetes in early pregnancy in Denmark

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Aims: To secure adequate carbohydrate supply in pregnancy, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommends a minimum amount of carbohydrates of 175 g daily. Currently a low carbohydrate diet is a popular health trend in the general population and this might also be common among overweight and obese pregnant women with type 2 diabetes (T2D). Thus, we explored carbohydrate consumption among pregnant women with T2D including women with type 1 diabetes (T1D) for comparison.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study of consecutive women with T2D (N=96) and T1D (N=108), where dietary records were collected at the first antenatal visit.

Results: Among women with T2D and T1D, bodyweight at the first visit was 90.8±22 (mean±SD) and 75.5±15 kg (P<0.001) while HbA1c was 6.6±1.2% (49±13 mmol/mol) and 6.6±0.8% (48±8 mmol/mol), P=0.8, respectively. The average daily carbohydrate consumption from the major carbohydrate sources was similar in the two groups (159±56 and 167±48 g, P=0.3), as was the level of total daily physical activity (median (interquartile range)): 215 (174-289) and 210 (178-267) metabolic equivalent of task-hour/week (P=0.9). A high proportion of women with T2D and T1D (52% and 40%, P=0.08) consumed fewer carbohydrates than recommended by the IOM. The prevalence of ketonuria (≥4 mmol/L) was 1% in both groups.

Conclusions: In early pregnancy, a lower daily carbohydrate consumption than recommended by the IOM was common among women with T2D. The results were quite similar to women with T1D, despite a markedly higher bodyweight in women with T2D. Reassuringly, ketonuria was rare in both groups.

Original languageEnglish
JournalDiabetes Research and Clinical Practice
Volume152
Pages (from-to)88-95
Number of pages8
ISSN0168-8227
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2019

    Research areas

  • Faculty of Science - Carbohydrate, Pregnancy, Type 2 diabetes, Type 1 diabetes

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