Premature Babies, Higher Risk Of Developing Diabetes
Premature Babies, High Risk Of Diabetes
According to a new Swedish study, babies that are born prematurely could develop diabetes at a later stage during their lives. This is especially relevant to children who are born before 37 weeks. According to Dr. Casey Crump of Stanford University in California, doctors must “recognize that pre-term birth is a risk factor for diabetes in later life.”
While the study has been conducted in Sweden, the fact of the matter is that it could still have a larger impact elsewhere in the world. For instance, according to America’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), three out of every 25 babies are born prematurely.
Between 1973 and 1979, 28,000 people were born prematurely from the 630,000 in Sweden. Crump’s team observed that 15 out of 1000 premature babies that were born were diabetic by the time they reached their thirties. This was not only applicable to those who were born prematurely by a huge margin but even to those who were born by just one week early.
Crump also observed that the rate of premature babies in Sweden was a mere one third compared to America. Additionally, diabetes only affects 17 out of 1000 people in the age group of 25-35.
What is important to note at this juncture is that poor nutrition in the womb or even right after birth could affect the processes of metabolizing sugar in the babies’ bodies. However, Crump stated that premature birth is not as important as other markers such as family history and obesity.
Dr Caroline Fall, professor of International Pediatric Epidemiology at the UK’s University of Southampton, stated “I think prematurity is more of a problem in more deprived communities, and that is also the population in which you see more obesity”. Crump advises a healthy lifestyle that includes a natural diet along with exercise to combat developing diabetes risk.
Tags:developing diabetes, diabetes, diabetes risk factors, premature babies diabetes