Type 2 Diabetes - Evidence Suggests Red Meat Is Linked With a Higher Rate of Gestational Diabetes

In March of 2017, the European Journal of Nutrition reported on a study showing limiting red meat and iron could help to lower the risk of developing diabetes during pregnancy, also known as Gestational Diabetes. Researchers at the University of Navarra in Pamplona and several other institutions in Spain compared 3298 healthy Spanish women who reported having at least one pregnancy between 199 and 2012. The participants answered a dietary questionnaire that included questions about red meat, processed meat, and iron. A total of 172 cases of Gestational diabetes were diagnosed...

• mothers who ate the highest quantities of red meat had more than twice the risk of developing diabetes during their pregnancy as those who consumed the lowest amount.
• those who ate the highest amounts of processed meats had twice the risk of developing Gestational diabetes as those who ate the least.

The iron intake was also associated with an increased risk, although high iron came from high meat consumption. Iron supplements were not linked to diabetes developing during pregnancy. The scientists concluded high red and processed meat, rather than the iron found in the meats, raised the risk of Gestational diabetes.
Iron is an essential nutrient for expectant mothers increasing their blood supply as well as providing iron for fetal blood...

• by the end of pregnancy, about 600 to 700 ml of blood flows through the placenta.
• between weeks 24 and 29 of the pregnancy, blood flows through the umbilical cord between mother and baby at a rate of about 443 ml/minute.

According to the National Institutes of Health in the United States, pregnant women need to take 27 mg of iron per day for a healthy mother and baby.
Some good vegetable sources of iron include...

• legumes,
• seeds, and
• green leafy vegetables.

1. Two cups of raw spinach, with only 14 calories, will supply 1.6 mg of iron.
2. Two cups of kale, with 66 calories, supply 2.2 mg.
3. One cup of lentils containing 230 calories, contains 6.6 mg of iron, or about 25 percent of what a pregnant woman needs per day. If that sounds like a lot of calories, bear in mind one 214 gram steak with 4.0 grams of iron, contains 250 calories.
Healthful beverages are also a source of iron...

• a cup of soy milk, at 135 calories, supplies 1.6 mg of iron.
• almond milk, at only 60 calories per cup, provides 0.7 mg of iron.

Many times obstetricians prescribe prenatal vitamins with iron as well. No need for red meat with so many healthier choices of iron sources.

Although managing your disease can be very challenging, Type 2 diabetes is not a condition you must just live with. You can make simple changes to your daily routine and lower both your weight and your blood sugar levels. Hang in there, the longer you do it, the easier it gets.

By Beverleigh H Piepers

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