This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Sun Life Financial for IZEA. All opinions are 100% mine.
If you’ve been pregnant, you probably remember that “fun” medical test you took around 26 weeks. It consisted of drinking an unappetizing sweetened orange looking drink and some blood work – also known as the gestational diabetes testing. Yes it’s a pain to do and it’s time consuming, but it’s obviously a very important test. If a mom tests positive, it means lifestyle changes and sometimes daily medication. But the bigger impact is on the fetus. A positive test can result in a larger baby at time of birth and after delivery, the baby has a higher risk of being hypoglycemic.
I remember that for one of my sons I had to go back and do the gestational diabetes test for a second time. I was a little surprised but to be honest I wasn’t leading the most healthy lifestyle while pregnant and this can increase chances of gestational diabetes. Due to my constant nausea during pregnancy, I was barely able to walk without feeling sick, let alone partake in any form of workout. I also craved anything sweet (hello Nutella) and made daily visits to the local pastry shop. To say the least, I was feeling nervous leading up to my second test. Luckily, everything came back clear!
However, that’s not my only connection to diabetes. Both of my grandmothers have dealt with this chronic disease. While modern medicine has made it possible for most of us to live with this disease, it obviously requires a big lifestyle change. It’s just one of the many reasons why I have started to focus on improving my lifestyle recently. I’m trying to eat better and exercise more. I’m feeling stronger, I have more energy, and best of all, I’m able to keep up (mostly) with my boy’s active and busy lifestyle.
Most of us have probably been touched by diabetes at one point or another. That’s why I’m so thankful that Sun Life Financial made a $750,000 commitment to Sinai Health System to Team Up Against Diabetes and launch the Sun Life Financial Program to Prevent diabetes in Women. Through this program, the diabetes experts at Sinai Health will improve women’s health by developing risk assessment tools to help prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes in the future. Click here to Learn more about Sun Life’s support of diabetes.