Increasing my bedtime insulin

This page contains information on Increasing your bedtime insulin for our gestational diabetes patients.

Increasing your bedtime insulin

If you have gestational diabetes, you can sometimes have a drop in your glucose levels. If your levels become too low, you may develop hypoglycaemia.

Why is my fasting blood glucose level still high?

Your fasting glucose level can remain high due to increasing insulin resistance. Insulin resistance is when the pregnancy hormones being produced by your placenta, block the insulin from moving glucose out of your bloodstream.

As your placenta grows, so too do the hormones that cause this insulin resistance. This will increase your glucose levels.

If you need insulin to manage your glucose levels in pregnancy, we always expect your dose to increase as your pregnancy progresses. You may need to increase your dose of insulin regularly until about 34 or 36 weeks of your pregnancy.

There is no evidence to suggest that increasing your insulin dose is harmful to you or your baby. We encourage you increase your insulin to keep your glucose level in a range that is best for you and your baby.

Below is your insulin titration guide which explains how to increase your insulin dose. If you have any questions or concerns about increasing your insulin dose, call our diabetes educators for more support and guidance. 

How to increase your insulin levels
If your fasting blood glucose reading is 5.0 - 5.4 mmol/L for two days in a row, increase your bedtime insulin by 2 units If your fasting blood glucose is 5.5 mmol/L or more for two days in a row, increase your bedtime insulin by 4 units     Follow these directions and continue to increase your insulin dose until your fasting blood glucose is below 5.0 mmol/L

* Your blood sugar level is read in mmol/L which means millimoles per litre.

Diabetes Educators:
8am–3pm Monday to Friday T: (03) 8345 2153

Click to download as a factsheet