A condition which affects almost one in five pregnant women has been linked to higher rates of attention-deficient hyperactive disorder.
An ECU study has found children born to mothers who experienced gestational diabetes during pregnancy are more likely to develop ADHD and externalising behaviour.
ECU honorary researcher Dr Rachelle Pretorius and Professor Rae-Chi Huang examined data from 200,000 mothers and their children across Europe and Australia.
It found in children aged seven to 10, those born to mothers with gestational diabetes had consistently higher ADHD symptoms.
Children aged four to six years old born to mothers with gestational diabetes consistently exhibited more externalising problems than those born who did not.
“Externalising symptoms are behaviours directed outward. Instead of experiencing depression or anxiety, these children often display hyperactivity, impulsivity, defiance, or aggression,” Dr Pretorius said.
“Externalising problems frequently coexist with ADHD symptoms and tend to emerge before medical intervention, especially during the early school years.
“At younger ages, children may exhibit more externalising problems and as the child matures, symptoms or behaviour related to ADHD may become more apparent.”
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According to the Australian Institute of Health and Wellbeing, almost one in five women (18%) who gave birth in 2021–22 were diagnosed with gestational diabetes.
Prof Huang said that as ADHD does not have biological markers for diagnosis, it can be difficult to detect before symptoms manifest.
She said it was unclear why children exposed to gestational diabetes retained more externalising problems and ADHD symptoms.
“However, our findings suggest that these externalising behaviours may decrease over time but could extend into other domains such as neurodevelopment outcomes like ADHD symptoms,” Prof Huang said.
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Dr Pretorius noted that the exact mechanics of gestational diabetes influence on child development was still unclear.
However, she said it was believed acute and chronic maternal inflammation during pregnancy may influence certain pathways in a child’s brain programming in-utero and contribute to neurodevelopment, cognitive and behavioural outcomes later in life.
Dr Pretorius said several previous studies had also suggested that the severity of maternal diabetes, associated with maternal obesity and chronic inflammation, can have a joint impact on the development of autism spectrum disorder and ADHD in children, which is greater than the impact of either condition alone.
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This latest research follows results from a study released last year that found intrauterine exposure to diabetes could be a crucial factor in a baby’s development.
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