Gestational diabetes results in increased risk for Type 2 diabetes

NEW YORK Gestational diabetes greatly increases a woman’s risk of developing Type 2 diabetes later on in life, a new study confirms, according to Reuters.

Gestational diabetes is a known risk factor for Type 2 diabetes. Denice Feig of the University of Toronto and her team looked at 633,449 women who gave birth in Toronto between 1995 and 2002. A total of 21,823 (3.3 percent) of the women were diagnosed with gestational diabetes.

While just 2 percent of the women who didn’t have gestational diabetes went on to develop Type 2 diabetes during the 9-year follow-up period, 19 percent of those with gestational diabetes did, the researchers found.

Moreover, they say the strongest risk factor for Type 2 diabetes was gestational diabetes, which increased risk more than 37-fold.