Caesarean Warning Over Diabetes

Pregnant women in Northern Ireland are being warned to only opt for a Caesarean section if absolutely necessary as new research shows that babies born this way have a one fifth higher risk of developing diabetes.

The Queen's University Belfast research published this week showed that mothers giving birth by Caesarean have a 20% higher risk of their baby developing Type 1 diabetes in childhood compared to those having natural births.

The Diabetes UK and Queen's research examined 20 published studies on children with Type 1 diabetes born by Caesarean section.

It found the 20% increase "could not be explained by other factors such as birth weight, the age of the mother, order of birth, gestational diabetes and whether the baby was breast-fed or not".

Around 28% of pregnancies in Northern Ireland are delivered by Caesarean section, which is significantly higher that the World Health Organisation's recommended rate of 15%.

Iain Foster, Diabetes UK Northern Ireland director, said: "Not all women have the choice of whether to have a Caesarean section or not, but those who do may wish to take this risk into consideration before choosing to give birth this way.

"We already know that genetics and childhood infections play a vital role in the development of Type 1 diabetes in children, but the findings of this study indicate that the way a baby is delivered could affect how likely it is to develop this condition later in life. Diabetes UK would welcome more research in this area," he added.

Dr Chris Cardwell of Queen's University Belfast led the research.

He said: "This study shows a consistent 20% increase in the risk of Type 1 diabetes.

"It is important to stress that the reason for this is still not understood although it is possible that the Caesarean section itself is responsible, perhaps because babies born via that method are first exposed to bacteria originating from the hospital environment rather than to maternal bacteria.

Diabetes is a serious condition that, if not managed, can lead to fatal complications including heart disease, stroke, kidney failure and amputations. There are 2.3 million people in the UK diagnosed with diabetes and 250,000 with Type 1 diabetes.

There are around 6,000 people with Type 1 diabetes living in Northern Ireland.

(BMcC)