Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 5, 2025
Author Spotlight: Exploring the Long-Term Health Impacts of Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection on Offspring
Published on: May 17, 2024
Associations between maternal and offspring glucose metabolism: a 9-year follow-up of a randomised controlled trial
Sigrid L Nyen1, Astrid Kamilla Stunes2,3, Kari Anne I Evensen2,4,5
1Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway.
Insights
Maternal glucose levels during pregnancy may impact offspring
Area of Science:
- Reproductive Health
- Pediatrics
- Metabolic Health
Background:
- The prenatal environment significantly influences offspring's lifelong health.
- Maternal hyperglycemia is a growing concern for offspring's metabolic health.
- Understanding the long-term effects of maternal glucose on children is crucial for public health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between maternal glucose levels during pregnancy and offspring's glucose metabolism.
- To determine if in utero exposure to maternal glycemia affects offspring's fasting glucose and insulin resistance later in life.
Main Methods:
- Recruited 105 mother-child pairs from a gestational diabetes mellitus prevention RCT.
- Assessed maternal glucose via oral glucose tolerance tests around 34 weeks of gestation.
- Evaluated offspring glucose metabolism (fasting glucose, insulin resistance) at approximately 9 years of age.
- Utilized multivariable regression, controlling for hereditary and lifestyle factors.
Main Results:
- A borderline significant positive association was observed between maternal and offspring fasting glucose levels (p=0.050).
- No significant associations were found between maternal glucose levels and offspring insulin resistance.
- No significant associations were found between maternal 2-hour glucose levels and offspring fasting glucose or insulin resistance.
Conclusions:
- A link between maternal and offspring fasting glucose suggests prenatal glucose exposure may have lasting metabolic effects.
- These findings underscore the importance of maternal metabolic health for child health.
- Maintaining metabolic health in women of childbearing age is a key public health priority.
Introduction:
There is increasing evidence that the in utero environment affects the health and disease risk of offspring throughout their lives. The long-term effect of maternal hyperglycaemia on offspring glucose metabolism is of interest in a public health perspective. The aim of this study was to examine the association between in utero exposure to maternal glycaemia and offspring glucose metabolism.
Methods:
Mother-child pairs were recruited from an RCT to prevent gestational diabetes mellitus where 855 healthy pregnant women were randomised to exercise or standard antenatal care. The original RCT detected no group differences in gestational diabetes mellitus prevalence or insulin resistance. The two groups were analysed as one group in the present study. Maternal glucose levels were assessed after 2-hour 75-gram oral glucose tolerance tests in pregnancy week ~34. Offspring outcomes were evaluated at ~9 years of age and included fasting glucose and homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance. Multivariable regression models were performed, controlling for potential hereditary and lifestyle confounding factors.
Results:
Complete data were available for 105 mother-child pairs. The regression analysis showed a positive association between maternal and offspring fasting glucose that was borderline significant (beta=0.18, 95% CI [-0.00027, 0.37], p=0.050). We did not find significant associations between maternal fasting glucose and offspring insulin resistance (beta=0.080, 95% CI [-0.087, 0.25], p=0.34), or between maternal 2-hour glucose and offspring fasting glucose (beta=0.016, 95% CI [-0.038, 0.070], p=0.56) or insulin resistance (beta=0.017, 95% CI [-0.032, 0.065], p=0.49).
Conclusions:
Assessing a homogeneous group of healthy mother-child pairs, we found a borderline significant positive association between maternal and offspring fasting glucose, which persisted after adjustment for potential hereditary and lifestyle confounding factors. Our findings support other similar studies and highlight that improving the metabolic health of pregnant women, and women in childbearing age, should remain a key public health priority.
Clinical Trial Registration:
ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier NCT00476567.
Related Concept Videos
01:20Pathophysiology of Diabetes
Type 1 diabetes is characterized by autoimmune-mediated destruction of pancreatic β cells, with environmental factors potentially triggering this process in genetically susceptible individuals. Despite many not having a family history, certain genes increase susceptibility,...
01:22Diabetes Mellitus: Type 2 and Gestational
01:02Glucose Homeostasis: Regulation of Blood Glucose
During fasting, when blood glucose levels are low, the pancreas secretes glucagon. it...
01:19Overview of Carbohydrate Metabolism
Glucose transport into cells is facilitated by a family of transport proteins called GLUT (Glucose Transporters). GLUT4 is the primary glucose transporter for insulin-stimulated glucose...
01:16Hormones Regulating Blood Glucose
In addition to accelerating glucose uptake and utilization, insulin has...
01:26Oral Hypoglycemic Agents: Biguanides and Glitazones