Gestational Diabetes Demystified (feat. Kelly Carter)

[: 00:00:00

[00:00:25] Very simply, gestational diabetes is your body not being able to keep up with the insulin that's needed to be produced in order to grow this baby.

[: 00:00:34

[00:00:48] Are you ready? I'm having salad with a side of fries. Hey friend, welcome back to Salad with a side of fries. I'm Jen Trebeck, your host and health coach here with you every week, as [00:01:00] always, for wellness without the weirdness. And this month is six years of this podcast. And admittedly, I'm in a bit of disbelief that this will be the first time we have talked specifically about this topic.

[: 00:01:16

[00:01:39] So to talk through gestational diabetes with us, I have a truly incredible expert. She is the Chief Success Officer of Renew Rx, a maternal health platform, transforming how prenatal care is delivered, personalized and reimbursed. Certified nutritional practitioner, mindful eating specialist. She blends clinical insight [00:02:00] with a warm, practical approach to support women through pregnancy and beyond.

[: 00:02:04

[00:02:25] And sustainable. You see why we get along When she's not working, you will find her testing new recipes, chasing after her toddler, or enjoying a perfectly brewed coffee. Without further ado, I give you Kelly Carter.

[: 00:02:38

[00:02:44] Jenn Trepeck - Host: Thank you. It's wild. And welcome officially to the Salad with the side of Fry's family. We're excited. Yeah, so I wanna start with a little bit of your story and then unpack all things gestational diabetes, after we tell [00:03:00] our members what they're getting this week. Friends, do you have access to the Happy, healthy Hub?

[: 00:03:06

[00:03:30] A MA or ask me anything to target your specific questions or challenges. You can upvote other people's questions, see past q and a and so much more. All of this is yours for just $12 a month, or you prepay the whole year at once and you get it for less. Your recipe this week is for wholesome, no bake carrot cake bites.

[: 00:03:51

[00:04:12] So if you want this recipe, if you want this episode in full video plus access to our community chat and the 24 7, ask me anything, go to a salad with a side of fries.com/membership. From there, you'll click subscribe now and then follow the prompts to enter your payment info, create your login to Access the Hub and all of your benefits.

[: 00:04:33

[00:05:02] Okay. Kelly, from our last conversation, I know you were always curious about nutrition and wellness after watching Biggest Loser when you were in high school. So will you share with everybody you know, what you saw that intrigued you and what you learned later about what you saw?

[: 00:05:20

[00:05:28] Quickly, and again, TV magic, but how quickly your body could change when you changed the environment that you were in. And later on really realizing that that environment they created was not actually a healthy one. So, but I think the intensity of that change really drove me to understanding like, wow, the body's.

[: 00:05:53

[00:06:32] Like I was like, I don't wanna be like this. I wanna figure out, you know, how I can continue to prioritize my health. And the Biggest Loser really sparked that for me. Yeah. And it's so

[: 00:06:43

[00:06:58] And so then, you know, [00:07:00] with that sort of sparked your interest in nutrition and health and all of those things, what led you to, or how did you come to focus on gestational diabetes?

[: 00:07:11

[00:07:19] Because the one thing that the Biggest Loser really did not hyperfocus on was the nutrition piece. And they really focused on the exercise piece, which is, in my opinion, kind of secondary to what your body actually needs. So understanding that. Whole, like what does your body need to thrive in this environment?

[: 00:07:40

[00:08:01] Don't get healthy ultimately. So that led me to really focusing, like my first focus was on weight loss because it's so prevalent. And my first couple years as a nutrition coach was frustrating because I would spend a lot of time creating these incredible programs and meal plans and everything, and I found that my clients were motivated for.

[: 00:08:26

[00:09:01] And. She loved my approach on behavior change and new like the education, but taking it a step forward with behavior change and creating that roadmap for individuals. And she had just become a professionally trained chef. So food is medicine. Mm-hmm. And we originally wanted to support type two diabetes, and the reason is because.

[: 00:09:22

[00:09:51] We had type ones and then we had gestational diabetes. And we want to create a program [00:10:00] that you, as the person that we wanna support wants, not that we think what you want. And what we saw with the type ones was they were very set in their ways because it's a diagnosis that they've had for decades potentially.

[: 00:10:14

[00:10:36] So these women are just wanting all this information and to absorb it and really to even carry it forward. And that's where we really started hyper-focusing on that. We focus on diabetes and pregnancy now, not just gestational. Mm-hmm. However, the gestational diabetes ended up being our entry point because these women were actively searching for it and not finding any support.

[: 00:10:56

[00:10:59] Jenn Trepeck - Host: But I think [00:11:00] it's such a quintessential example of how our typical western medicine system says, here's a problem. Figure out how to fix it because our solution is, you know, a pharmaceutical that may or may not be the best option for you at this specific time.

[: 00:11:18

[00:11:40] Gestational diabetes. Like I said in our intro, we haven't really focused on, so will you define for everybody gestational diabetes, so we're all on the same page?

[: 00:11:50

[00:11:57] Gestational diabetes is [00:12:00] like in very layman's terms, it's. Hormonal changes that happen too aggressively because of the placenta and the growth of the baby. Every time or any time a woman gets pregnant, your body has to release more insulin to keep up with the demands of growing a baby. And very simply, gestational diabetes is your body not being able to keep up with the insulin that's needed to be produced in order to grow this baby.

[: 00:12:25

[00:12:50] Jenn Trepeck - Host: And we're gonna talk more about, you know, all these lifestyle choices and interventions that we can employ. But I think let's address some of the misconceptions, because I think [00:13:00] gestational diabetes, as you said, right, it leaves women feeling confused. Frustrated, you know, not really understanding what's happening.

[: 00:13:10

[00:13:20] Kelly Carter: Yeah. I mean, and a lot of the times that is the reaction because these women are told on a phone call, you failed. The blood test, right? So they're actively being told this. And now there's just this whole misconception of what actually, like what the blood test is actually test, or what the glucose test is actually testing.

[: 00:13:42

[00:13:47] Jenn Trepeck - Host: And so recognizing it's a function of the pancreas. And you mentioned before the placenta, so say more about the placenta's rule.

[: 00:13:54

[00:14:08] Like it's this, you're growing a baby and you're growing a placenta. To be honest, it's very strange. I have, uh, two kids, and when you, you literally have to, no one talks about this. You birth the baby and then you birth the placenta. Like it's this thing that you're growing and. Again, that's what is putting so much pressure on the body.

[: 00:14:25

[00:14:42] Understanding that piece of what gestational diabetes is can be really helpful. And I used to do all of the onboarding with our clients and I explained it very similar to how I'm explaining it now. And you could even tell, like these women are like, oh, okay, I get it. And I wish someone told me that [00:15:00] when I got diagnosed.

[: 00:15:01

[00:15:22] Kelly Carter: So when. I hate the term, but if you're have a geriatric pregnancy, which is again, hate that term so much 'cause you're 35 or older.

[: 00:15:33

[00:15:56] So the older you are, the more at risk you are again, because your [00:16:00] body's getting older. Typically, if you are overweight it again, it can, what I've seen is a lot of women. Like the spectrum of women are like 120 pounds to say even 320 pounds, right? So. I don't know how much weight can affect it, but if you are carrying more weight because of diet and lifestyle related issues, not because of metabolic issues, you're probably gonna be more at risk as well.

[: 00:16:29

[00:16:47] That can drive up your blood sugar levels. And the second that your blood sugar levels start to rise, insulin, more insulin is gonna be needed to produce, to support those sugars, and that causes extra stress on your pancreas. [00:17:00] So depending what your lifestyle is like beforehand. That's like my goal is to get women to really understand how effective seven months before you get pregnant, like, not that, you know, it's super easy to get pregnant, but that's kind of a very specific number that a lot of research is saying.

[: 00:17:23

[00:17:42] I feel like stress is a whole other ball game, but it's been so rewarding to be able to educate a lot of women about this because so many people are coming, like they're being diagnosed with this gestational diabetes and they're really not understanding why or how.

[: 00:17:57

[00:18:18] Of developing type two diabetes. If you experience gestational diabetes, right,

[: 00:18:25

[00:18:45] Jenn Trepeck - Host: Yes, for sure. So by that token, right, you are not doomed, as I say all the time with so many things. You are not doomed. And as you already mentioned, and we say all the time with everything health related, right? We wanna look at nutrition, [00:19:00] movement, sleep, and stress. So we're gonna talk about each one of those.

[: 00:19:04

[00:19:20] All products are gentle, easy to use, and 100% effective when used as directed. DNA Miracles partner with leading health professionals and scientists who follow the highest standards and ingredient selection to create the most effective skin, hair, and health. Solutions as natural as possible. DNA miracles is the best and safest option on the market for you and your little miracle.

[: 00:19:40

[00:20:03] Plus the natural hydrating body lotion. By the way, that one is great for everybody in the family because as we think about skin to skin contact, what the products we're all using make a difference. So everybody can use the DNA Miracles products. All of these, by the way, are 1995 or less. Each and those prices are before your 10% off and free shipping for being a salad with a side of fries listener.

[: 00:20:28

[00:20:55] Okay, Kelly. So let's take nutrition, movement, sleep, and stress in [00:21:00] terms of action steps to support those with gestational diabetes. So I suppose let's start with nutrition, which is, you know, my baby, your baby. And then, you know, so talk to us about, you know, what we wanna focus on when it comes to the nutrition piece.

[: 00:21:17

[00:21:19] Kelly Carter: Biggest thing is balance. So when you're diagnosed with gestational diabetes, typically people rush to carbs. And yes, carbs are what is going to drive your blood sugars up the most efficiently and quickly. And I guess the best tip that I can say about carbohydrates is donate carbs naked. Always start by eating your veggies for lunches and dinners first.

[: 00:21:42

[00:22:04] So that would be my biggest tip is balance and really making sure that you're not super worried about carbohydrates. You never eat them naked or alone. You always eat them with some sort of fiber, protein, fat, because I would say a lot of clients Google first, which again, if you're not getting really good resources right when you get diagnosed, very understandable.

[: 00:22:26

[00:22:51] Jenn Trepeck - Host: Yeah, so let's talk about that for a second. So for everybody, we have a nutrition nugget called naked carbs to dig in a little bit deeper on that. But I think one thing that's really important that you [00:23:00] start to touch on is like when somebody Googles and what comes back are these diets, and I rarely use that word, but these, you know, are definitely diet.

[: 00:23:10

[00:23:37] Kelly Carter: Exactly. Thank you for mentioning the placenta. 'cause it will get mad at you if you don't eat enough carbs. In terms of a balanced plate, the most effective way to eat, and it is very challenging. However, it never fails. Half your volume of your plate is vegetables like and leafy greens. I usually say like carrot, celery, cucumber, or cauliflower broccoli, like [00:24:00] not the potatoes or things like that, but fibrous vegetables, half the volume of your plate.

[: 00:24:07

[00:24:32] So having a quarter of plate of protein, quarter plate of carbs, and then half your plate of like volume wise of vegetables, that is a really good standard to start with. And then adjust as your body says, like yes or no to, and then sprinkling fats in there as well.

[: 00:24:48

[00:25:04] There's such a range of what is typical. I also think there's a misconception that, you know, being pregnant means. Gaining 20, 30, 40 pounds. So like, especially as we're talking about the nutrition piece, like mm-hmm. What do you guys see as guidelines and recommendations?

[: 00:25:24

[00:25:33] Research shows that if you gain more than 50 pounds during pregnancy, there can be a lot of health issues down the road for you and potentially baby. What I know is can be in the normal range is 25 to 40 pounds is very typical for weight gain in pregnancy. However, it's one of the things that I don't say often, never say to people, like to the [00:26:00] client's face ever, but just in general.

[: 00:26:03

[00:26:28] And then like, again, I don't say this on the call, but in my head, I want women to always just be nourishing themselves. Always. If you want ice cream every night after you nourish yourself, okay, like, let's just nourish ourselves. And that isn't the. Case when we get pregnant, that's not what people talk about.

[: 00:26:48

[00:27:14] I wasn't eating it, so baby took it from me. And a lot of women I don't think understand that either. I know that it's not a selfish thing to be eating for you first, 'cause baby's gonna take whether you do it or not. And that's how I like to coach and educate because I'm now left with this good thing.

[: 00:27:32

[00:27:47] Jenn Trepeck - Host: But that's before, like even what I was saying before as far as why a lot of the quote unquote diets that you're gonna find when you Google.

[: 00:27:55

[00:27:58] Kelly Carter: Oh my goodness. [00:28:00] Sorry, I did tangent there a hundred percent. Whenever we restrict any food group or isolate any food group, it's not going to work out for us. I have been talking to a lot of. Pregnant people. And the reason I talk about vegetarian a lot is because a lot of the time when like women are vegetarian, they aren't on pregnancy because they don't feel good.

[: 00:28:21

[00:28:43] And the other thing that I like to talk about too, a lot of women are like, oh, I'm just, well, I'm taking my prenatal. It's not going to fix everything, especially if your digestive system doesn't absorb as well as it should, which is extremely typical because again, a lot of us aren't in this [00:29:00] industry and don't understand how our bodies work and what damage we can do 20 to 30 years before we get pregnant just by eating the standard American diet.

[: 00:29:11

[00:29:46] Right. But with that said, right, what I'm curious what you see and talk about and recommend with gestational diabetes in the mix.

[: 00:29:56

[00:30:07] So I hope that's aligned with what this training. Yeah,

[: 00:30:10

[00:30:13] Kelly Carter: stopping. Oh my goodness. If your, like your body's used to it, it would, I definitely align on that piece. I

[: 00:30:19

[00:30:24] Oh, yes. And something that requires, you know,

[: 00:30:26

[00:30:48] It's the smallest things. It's making time for it. So our recommendations are very simple. Walk, go for walks, move. Do not sit for a long time. But to be honest, this [00:31:00] is what I would recommend to pregnant women. And what I love about our program is this program that we run. Is like a blood sugar balancing program, which is not necessarily, it's specific to that individual we're in front of, and they can carry on after pregnancy, like, because it's not, we're not dieting.

[: 00:31:23

[00:31:27] Jenn Trepeck - Host: Mm-hmm. Yeah.

[: 00:31:28

[00:31:30] Jenn Trepeck - Host: Okay. Sleep and stress in whatever order you wanna take them.

[: 00:31:35

[00:31:45] For the birth and for having a child and actively keeping you up or disrupting your sleep. And I'm such a fan of my body and when I read that research I was very disappointed. I just don't need to prepare to not sleep. So with sleep, we acknowledge it because if [00:32:00] when you don't have a good. Sleep. You wake up stressed and stress naturally increases your blood sugar levels and there is very little, if nothing that we can do about that, especially in the third trimester.

[: 00:32:10

[00:32:43] Like it can actually get pretty, very like overwhelming and. Someone in a negative space, which causes a lot of stress. So a lot of our coaching sessions can support with understanding where they are, understanding their environment, and giving them [00:33:00] very specific tips on, you know, going for a walk or taking a step away from any screens for at least 20 minutes.

[: 00:33:07

[00:33:14] Jenn Trepeck - Host: Yeah. And I think. Sleep is one of those pieces that these days I think more and more people are focused on it. I talk about all the time, I call it the ultimate biohack. And so it's sort of whatever we can do.

[: 00:33:27

[00:33:54] And obviously this works for everybody, not just those, you know, during pregnancy.

[: 00:33:58

[00:34:17] They did and a lot of the time journaling, just writing down, especially with now I don't know about anyone else when I'm was pregnant, mentally I was. I will never get pregnant again. Let's just say that. And a lot of the things in my head were staying in my head and just ruminating and not like. Then all of a sudden I was in this different reality.

[: 00:34:38

[00:34:59] I'm sure that a lot of [00:35:00] people do that to de-stress. I never thought about it that way. That was, thank you. I'm like, you're welcome. Yeah. I just feel like everyone is so stressed nowadays.

[: 00:35:09

[00:35:18] And the poor sleep, right? The physiology of stress and poor sleep make us less insulin sensitive. So really taking those on as pieces of this puzzle is really important.

[: 00:35:32

[00:35:46] And because they walked it off and had a good meal, their sleeps better. This is why you cannot isolate in general, isolate things when you're starting out, so that you're not doing 15 things at once. [00:36:00] Once you take a step back and look at how they all weave in together, it's pretty magical. Absolutely. All right.

[: 00:36:08

[00:36:29] However, it's really nice to know that there are companies out there that are mitigating this really intense. Like you failed. Now go prick your finger four times a day and you know, follow this book on eating whatever their diet is. Again, if you ever get this diagnosis or if you know anyone who has, give them a hug and don't be so hard on yourself because it is extremely manageable when you have the right team behind you.[00:37:00]

[: 00:37:00

[00:37:14] I'm like, I don't either. Gimme the salad and the fries of your week.

[: 00:37:17

[00:37:41] What's your flavor? Chocolate. Peanut butter. I hear you. Mm-hmm.

[: 00:37:46

[00:37:50] Kelly Carter: I would start another business that was focused on more culinary. I want every person to feel confident in the kitchen. That's what I want. That's what I would do. [00:38:00] That's what my mission would be.

[: 00:38:01

[00:38:02] Jenn Trepeck - Host: Your favorite book on any topic other than your area of expertise, or you could give us a fiction book.

[: 00:38:08

[00:38:18] Jenn Trepeck - Host: Awesome. If you could cure one ailment, disease or sickness, what would it be?

[: 00:38:24

[00:38:36] Jenn Trepeck - Host: If you were a superhero, what would be your superpower?

[: 00:38:39

[00:38:42] Teleportation. Mm-hmm. That's mine. Yeah.

[: 00:38:44

[00:38:47] Kelly Carter: People who know I'm a nutritionist and ask me like what they think about their plate when they're not paying me to, or if it's just at a party and they know I'm a nutritionist. Well what? Like, don't judge me. I'm like, [00:39:00] I'm not, you're not paying me.

[: 00:39:00

[00:39:03] Jenn Trepeck - Host: Alright. Last one. In your opinion, what's the next frontier in wellness?

[: 00:39:09

[00:39:13] Jenn Trepeck - Host: Well, Kelly Carter, thank you so much for being here. Tell everybody how to connect with you, where to learn more, all the things.

[: 00:39:20

[00:39:28] thenKelly@renewrx.health is my email. Best way to connect with me. Perfect. And

[: 00:39:33

[00:39:40] Kelly Carter: has been so fun. Thank you so

[: 00:39:42

[00:39:50] We're talking about Klo Kardashian's popcorn called Cloud Protein Popcorn. So I was at a party at someone's apartment [00:40:00] in New York. They had it. I tried it. I was very impressed with the flavor and admittedly like I did not take the bag and check it out. I figured we'll do that together. So I made a note, added it to the list.

[: 00:40:13

[00:40:30] Connect with me on Instagram or all social media. I am at Gen Tpic, J-E-N-N-T-R-E-P-E-C-K. Website is a salad with the side of fries.com. Pick your platform, send a message. I truly love hearing from you and Kelly Carter. Thank you again for being here and hanging out for our episode and our nutrition nugget.

[: 00:40:49

[00:41:19] So until next week, remember, gestational diabetes does not mean that you failed. It does not mean that you're doomed. In fact, it just might require a couple adjustments to your nutrition movement, sleep, and Stress. Well, friends, that's it for today's episode of Salad with a side of Fries. Congratulations for making yourself and your health a priority.

[: 00:41:41