Your hospital bag when you have gestational diabetes
Pack your usual bag, plus your meter and strips, all your medicines, your pregnancy notes and blood sugar record, and snacks that fit your plan. If you collected colostrum, bring it frozen. In hospital, your blood sugar is checked during labor, and your baby's is checked in the first hours after birth.
What to add to your bag
| Item | Why |
|---|---|
| Pregnancy notes and your blood sugar record | Your team uses your record to see how you are doing.12 |
| Meter, test strips and lancets | Some hospitals ask you to keep checking in labor and for the first 24 hours after the birth.3 |
| All your medicines, for diabetes and anything else | On one UK hospital's list.2 A written list of what you take and when helps the staff. |
| Snacks and drinks that fit your plan | The hospital menu may not fit your food plan.3 |
| Frozen colostrum, if you collected it | It can be used for your baby's first feeds.2 Tell the staff when you arrive so it goes in a freezer. |
| Formula starter pack, if you plan to bottle-feed | Your baby can feed straight away.2 |
First Fork makes a one-page PDF report of your readings that you can print and pack with your notes.
What happens in hospital
- In labor: NICE advises checking blood sugar every hour, with a target of 4 to 7 mmol/L (about 72 to 126 mg/dL).4 See induction and birth.
- After the birth: NICE says people with gestational diabetes stop their blood sugar medicine straight after the birth.4
- Your baby: a heel-prick blood sugar check 2 to 4 hours after birth, and a first feed soon after birth.4 See your baby after birth.
- How long you stay: one UK hospital keeps people with gestational diabetes at least 24 hours after the birth, to make sure both blood sugars are stable.2 Ask your hospital what it does.
Colostrum before the birth
If you plan to breastfeed, ask your team at about 36 weeks about collecting colostrum before the birth.3 One UK hospital suggests starting from 36 weeks, writing the date on each syringe, freezing it, and bringing it in when you are admitted.2 The ADA recommends breastfeeding after gestational diabetes; one of its benefits is a lower risk of type 2 diabetes later.5
Questions
What should I pack in my hospital bag with gestational diabetes?
Your usual bag, plus your meter and strips, all your medicines, your pregnancy notes and blood sugar record, snacks that fit your plan, and frozen colostrum if you collected it.
Do I need my glucose meter in the hospital?
Bring it. Some hospitals ask you to keep checking in labor and for the first 24 hours after the birth.
Should I bring my own snacks?
Yes. The hospital menu may not fit your food plan.
When can I start collecting colostrum?
Ask your team at about 36 weeks. One UK hospital suggests starting from 36 weeks if you plan to breastfeed.
Sources
- ACOG. Gestational Diabetes (FAQ 177, reviewed April 2026). https://www.acog.org/womens-health/faqs/gestational-diabetes
- The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust (UK). A guide to gestational diabetes (patient leaflet). https://www.dgft.nhs.uk/pil/a-guide-to-gestational-diabetes/
- Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (UK). Diabetes and pregnancy: gestational diabetes (patient information). https://www.cuh.nhs.uk/patient-information/diabetes-pregnancy-gestational-diabetes/
- NICE guideline NG3. Diabetes in pregnancy: management from preconception to the postnatal period (recommendations). https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng3/chapter/Recommendations
- American Diabetes Association. 15. Management of Diabetes in Pregnancy: Standards of Care in Diabetes—2026. Diabetes Care 2026;49(Suppl. 1):S321. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12690181/
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