Choosing the Right Pre Glucose Test Meal: Dietary Considerations

Shifali Maheshwari
13 Min Read

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Going for a glucose test and worried about what we have to eat before a glucose test so that you can pass glucose screening? Here you will find everything related to your Pre Glucose Test Meal1.

Glucose screening is known as a sugar test or glucose challenge test. A glucose test during pregnancy aims to check for gestational diabetes. In glucose tests, glucose tolerance tests are performed to check for gestational diabetes, when necessary. This is to get the therapy and maintenance for pregnant women during their whole journey of pregnancy. Pregnancy glucose test requires professional tips to manage gestational diabetes.

During the glucose examination, there are possibilities of getting a positive result for blood sugar levels, even though you don’t have gestational diabetes2.

Here we will find how to get the perfect and clear result for your further testing to detect gestation diabetes. Before knowing what to eat before glucose examination in measuring blood sugar levels let’s look at other factors.

1. Pre Glucose Test Meal

A glucose challenge test detects the measurements of blood sugar levels in your body. It is done to check for diabetes. Most of the healthcare specialists use glucose tests for the screening of Type 2 diabetes.

Let’s look at the type of blood glucose examination better for your blood glucose levels.

1.1. Capillary Blood Glucose Test

In this type of blood glucose level test, healthcare specialists gather a blood sample from a fingertip prick. These glucose tests add a test strip and glucose meter, this glucose meter exhibits your blood sugar levels instantaneously.

1.2. Plasma Blood Glucose Test

In this type of test,  a phlebotomist gathers a dot of blood. These tests are generally a part of a blood panel. After sending a sample to the lab, a medical laboratory scientist will perform the test on machines. The machine which detects your glucose level is called an analyzer.

2. Selecting Foods Before a Glucose Test?

The human body breaks down carbs into glucose while consuming anything which is the foremost basis of energy.

Two main glucose tests can scan your blood sugar levels to see and analyze gestational diabetes, especially at the time of pregnancy. This glucose test needs distinct eating techniques, and those who don’t pass the first test are provided with the second test.

Here are the two tests provided by your healthcare professionals.

2.1. Glucose Screening Test

whole wheat bread is great before a glucose test
Image by Young Shih/ Unsplash

Having a higher risk of gestational diabetes, your healthcare professionals will perform a glucose screening, basically in the morning. Your doctor will suggest you drink sugary beverages identical to a flat soda. An hour later they will have your blood drawn to check the glucose levels and blood sugar levels.

Do not skip your morning meal and do not eat a too-sweet dish or a simple carb-laden breakfast. Make sure to have a balance of healthy carbs and protein levels in your body. Especially the night before your screening and in the morning of your screening and healthy diet carbs.

To gain and make your stamina long-lasting, balance your feast with foods that contain lots of protein, dairy, nuts, or lean meat.

Eating complex carbs, will not lead you to have those blood sugar spikes. Also, these foods will save you from gestational diabetes. These complex-carb foods and nutrient-dense foods for a healthy diet are as follows.

2.1.1. Whole Grains

Whole grain foods that you should include in your balanced diet before a glucose test are wheat bread and oatmeal. Whole grains are beneficial and make your blood sugar fall.

2.1.2. Fresh Fruit

Fruits not only make your immune strong but also give you energy. To get the correct result for your blood sugar eat more and more fruits.

2.1.3. Vegetables

To balance your system it is very important to eat healthy foods like vegetables that will help you for the correct result.

These vegetables include tomatoes, broccoli, green leafy vegetables, and cucumbers.

Here are some of the healthy fats breakfasts that you should consider eating before your baseline glucose test. Eat breakfast like:

  • Plain Greek yogurt with blueberries
  • Mashed Avocado
  • Oatmeal with low fat
  • Tofu scramble
  • Scrambled eggs, beans, and tomatoes
  • Whole wheat toast or whole wheat bread with peanut butter

2.2. Glucose Tolerance Test

When the blood sugar level in your glucose test is so high, then it means your body isn’t delivering enough insulin. In this case, there are times when you may be required to go for a glucose tolerance test again.

In the Pre Glucose Test Meal, you will have to give the glucose test after fasting for few times. After the test, you can during some sugary or flat soda and give your glucose test by giving your blood more times.

For the glucose tolerance test, you’ll need to avoid consuming any foods for up to eight hours before your glucose test appointment.

3. How to Prepare for a Blood Glucose Test?

When your professional health specialist recommends you for any type of glucose screening, you should follow those tips.

In the case of a glucose tolerance test, you are suggested to fast for at least 8 hours. You should drink water as much as you want but eating should be avoided in fasting glucose test.

Your healthcare professionals will suggest to you if there are any separate instructions you need to follow other than fasting.

In case of a glucose screening test, you should eat as recommended. Eating healthily will bring you positive results.

4. What to do, to Pass the Glucose Test?

Healthy breakfast is the key point, for every perfect treatment. Therefore consider consuming complex carbohydrates and proteins before your glucose challenge test. If you are going for the glucose tolerance test,  then do get recommendations from your professionals regarding fasting.

In the case of this test, doctors usually prefer you to do fasting for at least eight hours.

4.1. Fasting Blood Sugar Test

When you opt for a glucose tolerance test, fasting is usually recommended. It is also said to be as fasting plasma glucose test. You are recommended to do fasting for at least 8 hours before your fasting glucose test.

The fasting in case of the glucose tolerance test lasts for at least 8 hours. This period can also result in fasting overnight. This means in the evening before your fasting glucose test, you can eat comfortably as usual. Before

5. What to Avoid Eating Before a Glucose Test?

To get the correct glucose blood test result, avoid sugary breakfast cereal and simple refined carbs. Your body can break down these meals faster. Breaking down these meals can lead to a spike in sugar levels. Also, avoid sugary drinks. A sugary drink is not the best option for glucose examination.

Avoid breakfast that has high-sugar foods. Also, for better results and not to suffer from gestational diabetes, try avoiding these foods.

This includes:

  • Fruit juice or other sugary glucose drink
  • Sweetened toppings, for example jam on bread or syrup
  • Sugary granola
  • Refined cereal
  • Pancakes or waffles
  • Donuts and pastries
  • White bread and toast
  • Sports drinks
  • Refined grains

6. Glucose Screening Result

After your glucose screening, your doctor can declare your result, whether it results in diabetes, pre-diabetes, or none, what can you do?

For your diabetes management, a diabetic or pre-diabetic result your doctor will confirm it with a different test. Also, when you are diagnosed with diabetes, this means you need antibody testing to show that you have type 1 or type 2 diabetes.

When your glucose screening results in gestational diabetes your doctor will recommend you to eat healthy meals. You will be suggested to do the regular exercises.

If your diet plan and exercise plan don’t result in bringing down your blood sugar, you will need to medic with insulin.

For a false positive test result, your doctor will suggest you to for the test again with a healthy diet.

Final Words

If you don’t pass the glucose test, it is not necessarily said that it is harmful to the growing baby in your womb. But you should always take the recommendations from your professional healthcare about your eating habits.

You should always know before a glucose test what kind of foods you have to eat and even after a glucose test if the result is not according to your acceptance.

When the test results are positive and you are diagnosed with gestational diabetes, it can go away if you concentrate on changing your eating habits. Eating healthily is not only beneficial for you but also for a healthy baby.

Your professionals will ask you to observe and look after your blood sugar or blood glucose levels and eating routines. Also, keeping blood sugar control is beneficial for health.

Avoiding sweet liquid or processed food is beneficial for your blood glucose levels3. In pregnancy glucose tests, adding meals with complex carbohydrates and protein will help not only your body but also your child’s. It is beneficial for the treatment of gestational diabetes and high blood sugar.

Even for any disease control you should eat healthy fats.

FAQs

Q1. What is the glucose test?

Glucose test checks for your blood sugar levels and diabetes. It detects the measurement of your blood sugar in your system. You can read the types of glucose tests in this article above.

Q2. Who needs a glucose test?

Generally, pregnant women need glucose tests. When you have a high risk of diabetes, glucose screening is done. Not all pregnant women need to go for this test. Women with low risk do not have any screening tests to detect blood sugars.

Q3. How to pass the glucose test?

To keep blood glucose levels in control, you should eat healthy and balanced foods that consist of carbohydrates, and proteins. Here is a glucose solution- eat fruits, and vegetables as they are good sources of carbohydrates to avoid getting any blood sugar spikes.

  1. Della Man, C., Andrea Caumo, and Claudio Cobelli. “The oral glucose minimal model: estimation of insulin sensitivity from a meal test.” IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering 49.5 (2002): 419-429. ↩︎
  2. Buchanan, Thomas A., and Anny H. Xiang. “Gestational diabetes mellitus.” The Journal of clinical investigation 115.3 (2005): 485-491. ↩︎
  3. Adams, O. Peter. “The impact of brief high-intensity exercise on blood glucose levels.” Diabetes, metabolic syndrome and obesity: targets and therapy (2013): 113-122. ↩︎

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By Shifali Maheshwari Content writer
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Shifali is a creator with a journalist's pov, Shifali is a reader and writer with professional reading and writing skills. Shifali loves travelling and she writes travel and lifestyle blogs.