The causes of
autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are poorly understood. There have been many
“culprits,” including environmental pollutants, parental ages, and genetic
determinants, but these are at best, theoretical, and at worst, made up. A new
study examined the possible influence of another factor—maternal type 2
diabetes, a condition known to have a number of negative consequences for the
offspring, including too large babies and various metabolic abnormalities.
Led by Dr. Anny
H. Xiang from Kaiser Permanente Southern California in Pasadena, researchers
conducted a retrospective evaluation of the frequency of ASD among
babies who were born to mothers with type 2 diabetes. The frequency of ASD
among 3 groups of babies was compared: first there were nearly 291,000 babies
whose mothers did not have diabetes during pregnancy — the control group;
second, there were about 25,000 infants whose mothers had developed diabetes
during pregnancy; and third, about 6500 infants whose mothers had type 2
diabetes before they became pregnant.
After controlling
for a number of factors, such as maternal age, number of births a mother had
had, income levels, race/ethnicity, history of other illnesses of the mother,
and sex of the baby, there were some differences between the groups. Infants
whose mothers had diabetes before pregnancy were not more likely than controls
to develop ASD. But if the mothers had gestational diabetes diagnosed at 26
weeks of pregnancy or earlier, their offspring had a significant 42 percent
increased risk of being diagnosed with ASD.
ACSH’s Dr. Ruth
Kava commented “These results, while needing to be replicated, should be taken
as a warning that pregnant women should endeavor to avoid developing type 2
diabetes to the extent possible (and it is not always possible). But
maintaining a healthy body weight before becoming pregnant and gaining only a
reasonable amount of weight during pregnancy may help prevent the occurrence of
gestational diabetes, and perhaps lower the risk of ASD in their babies. We can
also speculate, based on these data, that the increased diagnoses of ASD seen
in recent years could be related to the recent uptick in overweight and obesity
in women.”
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