Nutritional Prevention of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus

Pregnancy is a vulnerable period for both a mother and her developing child. The investigator hypothesizes that diet-induced glucose excursions in the pregnant mother are a key contributor to unfavourable brain development and epigenetic marks in the developing child. It is long known that metabolic conditions are influenced by maternal nutrition and that this can impact the unborn infant. The most prominent example is gestational diabetes (GDM). It is unclear at what point unfavourable changes in brain development occur during pregnancy. Unlike many previous trials, we plan to introduce healthy diet early in the first trimester. Comparative analyses of DNA methylation patterns in the offspring of women with or without GDM revealed preferentially methylated genes, particularly in pathways linked to metabolic diseases.

NuPreGDM is a randomized, controlled, open label intervention trail. The investigator aims to assess the effect of individual diet counselling combined with CGM compared to regular diet on glucose levels and postprandial glycemic excursions during an OGTT in pregnancy.

The investigator wants to assess the effect of dietary counselling combined with continuous glucose monitoring on GDM risk, glycaemia and pregnancy outcome, starting in the first trimester. The investigator further hypothesizes that improved glucose levels by a healthy diet will affect brain activity of the infant and prevent unfavourable epigenetic modifications.

The investigator plans to include 50 pregnant women within gestational week 4 and 14 after the last menstruation, with elevated risk for development of (GDM). Participants will be randomized 1:1 to either "diet modification group" (intervention) or to "standard diet group" (control). In the current trial, the investigator aims to modulate maternal metabolism with periodic personalized diet counselling on the basis of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) compared to regular diet throughout pregnancy. The investigator propose that a reduction in glucose excursions in the mother will lead to a healthy environment for the developing child and prevent altered brain activity in utero, which will be assessed by fMEG (fetal magnetoencephalography) during a 75g OGTT in gestational week 28. The investigator further planned to examine child's leucocytes from cord blood to assess whether a healthy diet of the mother prevented epigenetic alterations due to improved maternal glycaemia, as exploratory endpoint. The development of blood sugar levels of the mother postpartum will be assessed by an further OGTT 6-12 weeks postpartum.