Doctors have warned that pregnancy-related diabetes not just affects the health of the women but also the health of their newborns, which could have life-long consequences.
Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a type of diabetes that develops and affects expecting mothers during their pregnancy. In recent years, the increasing sugar levels among pregnant women have concerned many physicians.
In a recent study, researchers found that this type of diabetes causes the unborn baby to grow bigger in the womb. This places the mother's life at risk during childbirth. It also increases the newborn's chances of becoming obese and diabetic later in life.
In a new study published on April 18 in the Hypertension journal of the American Heart Association, researchers found that women diagnosed with gestational diabetes are more likely to develop high blood pressure later on. On the bright side, this risk can be lowered with a healthy diet.
"Our earlier research showed that diabetes in pregnancy increased a woman's risk of developing hypertension, even 16 years after giving birth," said senior study author Cuilin Zhang, M.D., Ph.D.
Rising Sugar Levels Among Pregnant Women In India
A free health checkup was recently conducted at the AMC Chelipura School in India. Doctors found that among the 300 patients they analyzed, 200 already had diabetes. During the free sugar checkup, 10 new diabetes cases were discovered on the spot.
According to one of the doctors who analyzed the patients, four of the 10 new diabetes patients were women. Three women were between 22 and 24 years old while the other one had been diabetic since childhood.
Two of these women had GDM, said Nafeha Siddiqui, a diabetologist who took part in the free health checkup. GDM develops during pregnancy and, in some cases, disappears after the woman gives birth.
"As lifestyle issues such as disrupted sleep-wake cycles become more common, and the average age of the pregnant woman rises, these numbers are set to rise further, since women over 25 are already at a higher risk of gestational diabetes," said B T Ankushe, who was also one of the attending doctors.
While no conclusive research can prove the exact causes of GDM, Siddiqui added that unhealthy lifestyle habits such as lack of exercise, obesity and high junk food intake could trigger the conditional among pregnant women.
Other lifestyle-related health conditions such as the polycystic ovarian disorder (PCOD) are more likely to trigger GDM development during pregnancy.
