Diabetes in pregnancy: management from preconception to the postnatal period

Your medication before and during pregnancy

Your care team should talk with you about your diabetes medications, and may advise you to change them when trying for a baby and during pregnancy.

If you are taking tablets to control your diabetes, you should usually switch to insulin injections instead. But you may be able to take metformin tablets before and during pregnancy as well as, or instead of, insulin injections.

If you take insulin, you may be able to carry on as before, or you may be advised to change to another insulin. Your care team will talk with you about this.

Your care team should also talk with you about any other medications that you are taking. You may be advised to stop taking certain tablets for high blood pressure and replace them with others that are safer to use when trying for a baby and during pregnancy. If you are taking statins (for lowering your cholesterol), you should be advised to stop before trying for a baby or as soon as your pregnancy is confirmed.