(This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Sun Life Financial. All opinions are 100% mine.)
I spent a sunny afternoon with my daughter Maya, soaking in the feel of spring and appreciating our blossoming city and the beauty surrounding us. I also spent the day grateful for our happy minds and healthy bodies, especially after speaking with Sun Life about their beautiful initiative –
I recently learned about Sun Life’s commitment to post – pregnancy diabetes and it made me reflect on and appreciate my healthy pregnancies that much more. It also made me think a little deeper about how one day Maya may be pregnant and will have to go through the exciting yet scary journey herself – which I can only hope that she will let me be part of (but then again, I didn’t let my mother into the delivery room!)
Pregnancy – one of the most exciting times of our lives, yet, I found myself worrying almost everyday. Every time I ate something unhealthy, every time I forgot to take my vitamins, every time I didn’t drink 8 glasses of water, every time I had a blood test, every time I peed on the paper stick, every time I had an ultrasound. I mean the entire pregnancy I was worried. Worried that I would hear some sort of bad news.
The reality is that many women do develop complications during pregnancy, and inevitably have to hear the bad news. I was extremely fortunate to have two healthy journeys but I do have many friends that endured things that have changed them, for good. Gestational diabetes is one of the complications that can have lasting effects. Do you remember that sugary drink test? That’s the one we took to see if our bodies had developed gestational diabetes…
Gestational diabetes is a type of diabetes that occurs during pregnancy. Your body cannot produce enough insulin to handle the effects of a growing baby and changing hormone levels. Insulin helps your body to control the level of glucose (sugar) in your blood. If your body cannot produce enough insulin, your blood sugar levels will rise.
If left undiagnosed or untreated, gestational diabetes can lead to high blood sugar levels. This increases the risk of a large baby and possibly a difficult delivery. Gestational diabetes can also increase the risk of your baby becoming overweight and developing type 2 diabetes in the future.
I am happy to support Sun Life and their commitment to post-pregnancy diabetes because we are all at risk for developing gestational diabetes during pregnancy. Their commitment to helping prevent diabetes makes me really happy about the possibility of a healthier future, not only for us, but for our children.
Diet and regular exercise can help keep your glucose levels healthy. Learn more about the benefits of exercise here.
And learn more about their initiative here.