In many cases, having diabetes won’t affect your success at trying to conceive. This assumes, however, that you take the steps necessary to manage your diabetes. Diet, exercise and medication can all be a part of successful diabetic management, and keeping on top of those things will not only prolong your life but also give you a better chance of trying to conceive.

If you’re diabetic, you should make sure you have your diabetes under control when you’re trying to conceive, because once you’re pregnant it’s even more important. Uncontrolled diabetes can negatively impact your pregnancy in a number of ways.

For example, having diabetes does put you at an increased risk for having a baby with birth defects.  This is due mainly to the high levels of blood glucose and ketones that are often in a diabetic’s system.  Because of this, it is important to have your blood glucose under control before becoming pregnant.  The first six weeks of pregnancy are critical, as the baby’s organs are first forming.  High blood glucose levels during this time greatly increases the odds of having birth defects.  Because most women don’t know that they are pregnant until the baby has been growing for two to four weeks, if you are trying to conceive you should make every effort to have your blood glucose levels under control.

Being diabetic affects how you prepare yourself for pregnancy as well as how you progress in your pregnancy. You want to make use of all of the appropriate medical resources during pregnancy, including your OB, a pediatrician familiar with the risks of diabetes, a dietician to help change your  meal plan as your needs change both during and after your pregnancy, and your endocrinologist or other doctor who manages your diabetes.

Women with type 1 diabetes will most likely need to have a modified insulin plan, because the amount of insulin demanded by your body will rise during pregnancy. With type 2 diabetes, you’ll want to make sure to talk to your doctor about any diabetes management medication you’re taking to see whether or not it’s considered safe to take during pregnancy.