Gestational Diabetes: Will it go away?

First, take a deep breath—you are not alone! Gestational diabetes is very common and is entirely related to your pregnancy. For the vast majority of women, yes, gestational diabetes completely goes away shortly after giving birth.

Here is why it happens: During pregnancy, the placenta produces a massive amount of hormones to help your baby grow. Unfortunately, these hormones naturally block the action of the mother's insulin, causing severe insulin resistance. If your pancreas cannot produce enough extra insulin to overcome this resistance, your blood sugar rises, resulting in gestational diabetes.

Once the baby is delivered and the placenta is gone, those hormone levels drop, and your blood sugar usually returns to normal within a few days or weeks. However, having gestational diabetes does act as a warning sign. Women who develop it during pregnancy have a significantly higher risk of developing Type 2 diabetes later in life. Your doctor will likely want to re-check your A1C a few months postpartum and encourage healthy lifestyle habits to protect you in the future.