A new study revealed that pregnancy diabetes is associated with an increase in the risk of children with brain and nervous system problems. This study is added to an increasing group of evidence that links the mother’s diabetes to a set of complications that affect the health of the child.
Although the results do not describe only a link, and do not explain whether diabetes is already causing these problems, the experts stated that the data emphasizes the need to examine and early treatment of diabetes.
The study was conducted by researchers from the University of Central South in China, and its results were published in the Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology on April 7, and the New York Times was written about.
Pregnancy diabetes
Pregnancy diabetes affects women during pregnancy. Pregnancy diabetes can increase some health risks to the mother, including heart disease, postpartum depression, and type 2 diabetes.
Previous studies have also shown that pregnancy diabetes can negatively affect the health of the child, which may increase the risk of developing asthma in childhood, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, and neurological growth problems.
Researchers analyzed data collected from 202 previous studies that included more than 56 million pairs of mothers and children, and examined the results of children whose mothers were affected by diabetes.
How does pregnancy diabetes affect children?
Even taking into account other factors such as a woman’s age and body mass index, the possibility of diagnosing children with diabetes mothers during pregnancy with a 28% higher nervous growth disorder compared to children whose mothers did not have diabetes during pregnancy. The risk of hyperactivity disorder, attention lack and mental disability had a little higher compared to the risk of other disorders, such as autism.
The researchers also found the high possibility of nervous growth disorders in children with diabetes before pregnancy, compared to those who were caused by pregnancy diabetes that begins during pregnancy and often goes away after it.
It is not yet clear the possible cause of the link between high blood sugar levels and nervous growth problems. However, the researchers indicated that type 1 diabetes, which is a self -immune condition, can increase inflammation in children, which can be linked to an increase in the risk of autism, hyperactivity disorder and lack of attention.
Diabetes in the mother also affects how genetic expression, the process through which specific genes are activated to produce a required protein, and may cause changes that affect the functions of the brain.