Caesarean Babies More Likely To Have Type 1 Diabetes

Main Category: Diabetes
Also Included In: Pediatrics / Children's Health;  Pregnancy / Obstetrics
Article Date: 23 Aug 2008 - 6:00 PST

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New research¹ reveals that mothers giving birth by Caesarean section have a 20 per cent higher risk of their baby developing Type 1 diabetes in childhood compared to those having natural births, warns leading health charity Diabetes UK.

The research examined 20 published studies on children with Type 1 diabetes born by Caesarean section and found that there was a 20 per cent increase in the risk of babies born by Caesarean section developing Type 1 diabetes. This 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.

On average 24 per cent of pregnancies in England are delivered by Caesarean section, which is significantly higher that the World Health Organisation's recommended rate of 15 per cent.²

Dr Iain Frame, Diabetes UK Director of Research, 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."

Dr Chris Cardwell from Queen's University Belfast led the research. He said: "This study shows a consistent 20 per cent 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.

"Type 1 diabetes in childhood has become much more prevalent across Europe recently and the rate of this increase suggests that environmental factors are the cause. However, despite much investigation, these actual factors remain largely unknown."

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.

For more information visit http://www.diabetes.org.uk

1 'Caesarean section is associated with an increased risk of childhood-onset Type 1 diabetes mellitus: a meta-analysis of observational studies' by Cardwell CR, Stene LC, Joner G, Cinek O, Svensson J, Goldacre MJ, Parslow RC, Pozzilli P, Brigis G, Stoyanov D, Urbonaitë B, Sipetiã S, Schober E, Ionescu-Tirgoviste C, Devoti G, de Beaufort CE, Buschard K, Patterson CC at the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen's University Belfast.

2 'Towards better births: A review of maternity services in England' July 2008 Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection.

3 Diabetes UK is the charity for people with diabetes. We fund more than £7 million of medical research every year, provide information and support to people with diabetes and campaign on their behalf. For more information visit http://www.diabetes.org.uk.

4 In the UK, there are currently 2.3 million people diagnosed with diabetes and it is estimated that more than half a million people have the condition but do not know it.