Investigation of the diabetic effects of maternal high-glucose diet on rats

Diabetes mellitus become an epidemic problem throughout the world. Relation of the diabetes with diet is known. Some evidence is reported about mother died and risk of diabetes in babies during the life related with gestational diabetes. This study was conducted to examine the effects of the exposure of high-dose sucrose to rats and pups during pregnancy and lactation.

The mother rats were categorized into four groups, during pregnancy and until the offspring were 1-month-old, as follows: Group 1, provided with normal drinking water; Group 2, provided with water containing 10%; Group 3, 20%; and Group 4, 30% table sugar. During the study, the weights and daily fluid consumption of the animals were recorded. At the end of the study, the changes in blood, urine, and pancreatic tissues of the rats were examined.

The pups in the groups supplemented with sugar had more weight gain than those of the control group. Although serum glucose levels of mothers and young rats in the groups fed with sugar-containing water did not reach the diabetic limits, it was observed that these animals had statistically significantly higher blood glucose levels than those in the control group. Insulin levels were also similarly increased by an increase in the amount of sugar. Immunohistochemical studies on the mother rats showed that insulin secreted cell numbers and insulin receptors significantly decreased in some pancreatic islets in the groups supplemented with sugar. Glucagon immunoreactivity examination showed that the number of glucagon-expressing cells decreased in the rat groups supplemented with sugar. Similar and more severe findings were observed in the offspring.

This study has experimentally demonstrated that high daily intake of sugar in healthy pregnancies causes adverse effects on the mother and offspring.