There are lots of mothers-to-be who have sugar in their urine after having a routine urinalysis. However, having traces of sugar in the urine does not make a person instantly diabetic. It just means that your body is doing what it should do - which is to make sure that your fetus is obtaining enough glucose or sugar. This is reasonable since the baby has been relying on you for its food supply ever since conception.

Insulin regulates the glucose level in your blood and makes sure that there is a substantial amount that is taken in by your body cells for sustenance. Pregnancy sets off anti-insulin mechanisms to ensure that enough sugar is being circulated in your bloodstream to nourish your fetus.

In some cases, the anti-insulin effect is extremely strong that it leaves excess sugar in the blood after meeting the sugar requirements of both mother and child – more than can be dealt with by the kidneys. This “excess” is passed into the urine. Thus having sugar in the urine is usually a very common occurrence in pregnancy, particularly in the second trimester, which is the time when the anti-insulin effect increases. In fact, an estimated half of all pregnant women have some increase in sugar level in their urine at one point or another in their pregnancies.

In the majority of these women, the body acts in response to an increase in blood sugar through a higher production of insulin, this usually eliminates the excess amount of sugar. But some women especially those who are diabetic or have some tendencies toward diabetes, may not be able to generate enough insulin at one time to control the increase in blood sugar .Either way, these women will continue to show elevated levels of blood sugar in both their blood and urine. For those who were not diabetic in the past, this condition is known as gestational diabetes.

If, at your next visit, there is sugar in your urine, your doctor may check and analyze your blood for sugar and may require you to undergo a glucose-tolerance test, a procedure that would accurately mirror the body’s reaction to sugar in the bloodstream and categorizes those individuals with diabetes. Some symptoms that could suggest gestational diabetes would include excessive hunger and thirst, frequent urination, even in the second trimester, recurrent vaginal monilial infections and an increase in blood pressure.

Roughly 1% to 2% of pregnant women acquire these conditions which have been more appropriately called carbohydrate intolerance of pregnancy” instead of the frightening “gestational diabetes” – making it the most common pregnancy complication. Because it has become so common, most doctors now screen for it routinely between the 24th and the 28th weeks of pregnancy. Higher-risk mothers-to-be are screened earlier on and more often.

Having some light or spotty bleeding in the second or third trimester is usually not a cause for concern. More often than not, it is the effect of strain or distress to the progressively more sensitive cervix after an internal exam or after having sexual intercourse, or simply of some unknown causes. However, in some cases, it is a sign that immediate and abrupt medical attention is necessary. Since only your practitioner would be able to determine the cause of the bleeding, you should notify him or her once you experience any bleeding, immediately if the bleeding is heavy or on the same day if it is a little spotty and there are no additional or accompanying symptoms.

Here are some of the most common causes of serious bleeding:

1. Placenta Previa, or low-lying placenta.

In placenta previa, the placenta is attached in the lower half of the uterus, covering or partially covering or touching the edge of the OS or mouth of the uterus. The bleeding is usually bright red and painless. Generally, it starts spontaneously, but coughing, straining, or sexual intercourse can also initiate it. It can be light or heavy, and usually stops, only to persist later on in pregnancy. Because the placenta is blocking the baby with low-lying placenta, they do not usually “drop” into the pelvis in anticipation for delivery.

2. Abruptio Placenta or Premature Separation of the Placenta.

This condition, in which the placenta separates from the uterus prematurely, is responsible for roughly 1 in 4 cases of late-pregnancy bleeding. The bleeding may be as light as a light menstrual flow, or can be as heavy and may or may not have clots. If there has been a major separation, there could also be signs of shock because of blood loss.

3. Late miscarriage.

Any spontaneous expulsion of a fetus between the end of the first trimester and the 20th week is termed as a late miscarriage. If a miscarriage is about to occur, the discharge may be pink or a scant brown at first; and if the miscarriage is inevitable, the bleeding may be heavy and could also be accompanied by pain.

4. Premature labor.

Premature labor is labor that begins after the 20th week but before the 37th of gestation. The discharge may be blood with mucus and could also be accompanied by contractions. Additional symptoms would include menstrual-like cramps, with or without diarrhea, nausea, or indigestion; lower back pain or pressure; an aching or pressure in the pelvis, thighs or groin; a watery or pinkish or brownish discharge possibly preceded by the passage of a thick, gelatinous mucus plug; and/or a trickle or flow of amniotic fluid from the vagina.

It is a good thing that toxemia, otherwise known as pre-eclampsia / eclampsia or pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) is uncommon. Even in the mildest form of the condition, it presents itself in only 5% to 10% of pregnancies – and a majority of these cases are among those who came into pregnancy already having chronic high blood pressure.

Toxemia usually occurs in first pregnancies and sometime beyond the 20th week of gestation. No one actually knows what causes PIH, or why first-time mothers-to-be acquire it most often, although there has been some research that relates it to poor nutrition.

There are studies that suggest taking small doses of aspirin or massive doses of calcium to avoid it have not been thoroughly proven. Women who became pre-eclamptic have been tested to have toxic substances in their blood. When put in a test tube, these toxic substances create damage to the human endothelial cells (these are the cells that are lining the blood vessels). It is hypothesized that they are made by the body as a defensive reaction of the immune system to the foreign bodywhich is the baby.

In those women who are already getting regular prenatal care, it is usually diagnosed and prevented early on. It may also just be an isolated elevated reading, so your practitioner might advise you to relax more and to limit your intake of sodium and fat and to eat at least 8 to 10 servings of fruits and vegetables per day. Although routine visits to the doctor may seem like waste of time, it is at these visits that the initial signs of pre-eclampsia are detected.

The early symptoms can be the swelling of the hands and face, a sudden extreme weight gain, high blood pressure reading (140/90 or more in a woman who never had high blood pressure) and having protein in the urine. The condition can develop quickly to the acute stage, distinguished by a further upsurge in blood pressure (usually 160/110) or higher, and increased amount of protein in the urine, having blurred vision, some headaches, unexplained itching, irritability, very little urine output, confusion and acute gastric pain. If left untreated, acute pre-eclampsia can progress quickly to the serious eclampsia, distinguished by convulsions, and occasionally, coma.

Also, if pre-eclampsia is not detected, it may cause permanent damage to the nervous system, the kidneys or the blood vessels of the mother and possibly growth retardation (due to a reduced supply of blood through the placenta) or oxygen deficiency in the baby. Luckily, for the women who are receiving regular prenatal care, the disease is detected early on and can be treated effectively, preventing more serious complications.

You may have heard that cats can carry a disease that can harm the fetus in a pregnant woman. Pregnant women often worry if they have come down with the disease, which is called toxoplasmosis. A lot of women who are indeed infected show no symptoms, although some will notice the following like mild malaise, slight fever and swollen glands two or three weeks after exposure, a noticeable skin rash may also follow.

Undergoing a blood test to check for antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii is available however it is not 100% accurate. If you have previously been tested for antibodies that is the only time it would work.You need to ask your practitioner to verify if you were tested prior to getting pregnant. If you did have antibodies then – which is very likely if you do have a cat – you are already immune and should not worry about acquiring an infection now. You may be advised to be tested periodically until you deliver so that if you suddenly test positive, it would be an indication of a new infection.

In the unlikely event that it happens (in the U.S., only 1 woman in 1,000 is recorded to have been infected during pregnancy), a comprehensive dialogue of the available options with the doctor, possibly a maternal-fetal sub-specialist, or with a genetic counselor, must be the next step. The period in a pregnancy when the infection presents itself is also factor to consider. The threat to a fetus contracting the infection during the first trimester is smaller, most probably less than 15 percent but the risk of having serious damage done to the fetus is very high. During the second trimester, the possibility of contracting the infection is a bit higher, but the threat of fetal damage is fairly smaller. During the last trimester, the fetus is most prone to have contracted the infection, but the risk of making serious damage is the smallest. It has been documented that only 1 baby in 10,000 is born having severe congenital toxoplasmosis.

Another factor to take into account is if the fetus itself has become infected. There have been recent advances that have made it possible to do testing for fetal infection through a process called amniocentesis and through the analysis of a sample of fetal blood and/or amniotic fluid. This is usually done before 20 to 22 weeks. Lastly, it is advised that if a pregnant woman proves to have an infection and does not want to terminate the pregnancy despite of what the tests suggest, she must be treated with the prescribed special antibiotics – for several months. Doing this treatment has proven to greatly reduce the danger of a baby being born having severe problems.

Experts say that the best treatment of toxoplasmosis is prevention. Here are some ways to avoid infection:

1. Make sure that your cats are tested by a veterinarian to check if they indeed have an infection that is active. If they do, you need to lodge them at a kennel or have a friend take care of them for 6 weeks the period when the infection is contagious.

2. Do not forget to wear gloves when you are doing your gardening. Do not let your other children play in sandboxes or sand, where cats may have left feces.

Eating raw or undercooked meat or drinking un-pasteurized milk should also be avoided; if you insert a thermometer in the center of the meat after cooking, it should read at least 140° F. Make sure that when you dine In restaurants, meat is cooked well done.

There is a misconception by pregnant mothers that contracting strep B infection can cause death for their babies. Although it is correct that a newborn that acquires a group B streptococcus infection during birth from its mother may become ill and die, modern obstetrical practices have proven to be effective in preventing this to happen.

Group B Strep, which is also known as Beta Strep or GBS is a kind of bacteria that lives in humans. Ever since the early 1970's, this bacterium has been cited as the chief cause of deadly infections among newborn babies. Approximately 25% of women are proven carriers of the bacteria and may not even know it. These women may not even feel that they are infected. The bacteria are normally found in the lower intestine and/or vagina of about 15% to 40% of healthy women over the age of 18, regardless of their race or socio-economic status. GBS is not a sexually transmitted disease, so women should not be concerned their husbands or partners getting the illness. Also, Group B Streptococcus is different from Group A Streptococcus, which is the cause of strep throat.

GBS cases are more commonly contracted compared to the other illnesses that pregnant women are tested for, like rubella or German measles, spina bifida and Down’s syndrome. However, GBS still remains generally unfamiliar to the public.

According to research, 98% to 99% of babies who are born to mothers who are infected will not be infected themselves, if given prompt medical treatment. Among those who are infected, a few will have some problems with the medication for the infection. There are two kinds of infections: the early and late infection.

Early infections are likely to occur within the first six hours after being born, and a majority of the cases happen seven days after birth. Early infection can result in inflammation of the baby's brain, lungs or spinal cord.

Most cases of GBS infections are contracted during childbirth at which point the baby is exposed to the bacteria carried by the mother.

It has been estimated that 12,000 babies in the United States would be infected with GBS yearly. Getting infected with GBS consequently causes the death of around 2,000 infants each year, whereas others are left physically and/or mentally handicapped.

GBS may be present in the first pregnancy of a woman, or in the succeeding pregnancies. The bacteria can also be a threat during pregnancy and sometimes, more harmful at the time of delivery. It has been taken into account that women who have great amounts of these bacteria are placed at greatest threat of giving birth to a GBS-infected baby.

In addition to this, the incidence of getting a GBS infection is increased under some high-risk conditions. These high-risk conditions include premature labor; premature rupture of membranes; prolonged rupture of the membranes or more than 12 hours before actual delivery; and if the mother has more than 100.4 F fever before or during actual labor.