Abstract
OBJECTIVE Dietary interventions can improve pregnancy outcomes in women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). We compared the effect of a low–glycemic index (GI) versus a conventional high-fiber (HF) diet on pregnancy outcomes, birth weight z score, and maternal metabolic profile in women at high risk of GDM.
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS One hundred and thirty-nine women [mean (SD) age 34.7 (0.4) years and prepregnancy BMI 25.2 (0.5) kg/m2] were randomly assigned to a low-GI (LGI) diet (n = 72; target GI ∼50) or a high-fiber, moderate-GI (HF) diet (n = 67; target GI ∼60) at 14–20 weeks’ gestation. Diet was assessed by 3-day food records and infant body composition by air-displacement plethysmography, and pregnancy outcomes were assessed from medical records.
RESULTS The LGI group achieved a lower GI than the HF group [mean (SD) 50 (5) vs. 58 (5); P < 0.001]). There were no differences in glycosylated hemoglobin, fructosamine, or lipids at 36 weeks or differences in birth weight [LGI 3.4 (0.4) kg vs. HF 3.4 (0.5) kg, P = 0.514], birth weight z score [LGI 0.31 (0.90) vs. HF 0.24 (1.07), P = 0.697], ponderal index [LGI 2.71 (0.22) vs. HF 2.69 (0.23) kg/m3, P = 0.672], birth weight centile [LGI 46.2 (25.4) vs. HF 41.8 (25.6), P = 0.330], % fat mass [LGI 10 (4) vs. HF 10 (4), P = 0.789], or incidence of GDM.
CONCLUSIONS In intensively monitored women at risk for GDM, a low-GI diet and a healthy diet produce similar pregnancy outcomes.
- Received March 23, 2015.
- Accepted June 22, 2015.
- © 2015 by the American Diabetes Association. Readers may use this article as long as the work is properly cited, the use is educational and not for profit, and the work is not altered.
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March 2021
Volume 44, Issue 3
