Gestational diabetes can lead to type 2 diabetes, but a healthy lifestyle may reduce risk
- Gestational diabetes is diabetes that develops during pregnancy.
- People who’ve been diagnosed with gestational diabetes have a greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes later in life.
- A recent study shows that for women who have had gestational diabetes, adopting certain lifestyle practices is associated with a 90% reduced risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
- The results held true even among women who were obese or had a higher genetic risk for developing type 2 diabetes.
Pregnancy can bring with it a number of unique challenges and health concerns.
Pregnant people and their fetuses require various forms of monitoring throughout pregnancy to ensure healthy pregnancies and deliveries. One condition women are monitored for is gestational diabetes, a type of diabetes that develops during pregnancy. People who have gestational diabetes are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes later in life.
A recent study published in BMJ looked at modifiable risk factors for type 2 diabetes among women with a history of gestational diabetes.
The researchers found that the risk for developing type 2 diabetes decreased in women who adopted certain healthy lifestyle practices.
This risk assessment held true even among women who were obese or had a higher genetic risk for developing type 2 diabetes.
Gestational diabetes and type 2 diabetes risk
Gestational diabetes is diabetes that develops explicitly during pregnancy. Gestational diabetes can be caused by existing insulin resistance and increased insulin resistance linked to hormonal changes and fat gain during pregnancy.
About
After the pregnancy is over, blood sugar levels typically return to a healthy range. However, for those who have had gestational diabetes, there is a greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes later in life.
Dr. Wiyatta Freeman, an obstetrics and gynecology specialist at UT Physicians Women’s Center and Memorial Hermann Southeast Hospital in Houston, Texas, not involved in the study, told MNT that a history of gestational diabetes “is predictive of an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease (CVD), and even type 1 diabetes.”
Therefore, individuals who’ve had gestational diabetes should schedule regular follow-ups with their physician to screen for the development of type 2 diabetes and other chronic conditions.
Dr. Kay Lovig, an endocrinologist with White Plains Hospital Physicians Associates in New York, not involved in the study,
“Gestational diabetes is diabetes that occurs during pregnancy. During pregnancy, hormones that are made by the placenta result in insulin resistance in everyone. Insulin resistance means that your body does not respond as efficiently to the insulin you are producing in order to have a normal blood sugar…People who develop gestational diabetes have an increase in insulin resistance as compared to someone who does not develop gestational diabetes. Therefore, those who experience gestational diabetes are at a higher lifetime risk of developing type 2 diabetes, which is also a result of insulin resistance.”
Researchers are still looking into how to best reduce the risk for type 2 diabetes among those who have had gestational diabetes.
Ref:https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/gestational-diabetes-can-lead-to-type-2-diabetes-but-a-healthy-lifestyle-may-reduce-risk#Limitations-and-continued-research