Diabetes Health in the News: Risk of Gestational Diabetes Increases as Temperature Increases

 

A team based at St. Michael’s Hospital in Canada has completed a study that indicates pregnant women in areas with higher temperatures are at a higher risk of developing gestational diabetes. The team did account for many factors that are known to increase the chances of gestational diabetes. Once those factors were filtered out, the remaining data indicated that outdoor temperature can impact the development of gestational diabetes. The researchers determined that the risk of developing this health concern increases anywhere from six to nine percent for every additional 10 degrees C the temperature increases.

 

The team looked at the records of 396, 838 women who had given birth in Toronto between April of 2002 and March of 2014. Out of these women, 4.6% both developed gestational diabetes and lived in areas where they experienced temperatures under negative ten degrees C on a regular basis. A total of 7.7% of the women in the study who developed gestational diabetes lived in an area that was at least 24 degrees C on average. With all other factors accounted for, the study does suggest that the higher temperature was the result of the higher percentage of gestational diabetes.

 

These findings were published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal on May 15, 2017.

0 thoughts on “Diabetes Health in the News: Risk of Gestational Diabetes Increases as Temperature Increases

  • June 30, 2017 at 2:30 am
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    This is an interesting study.

    Reply

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