B3181 - Exposure to Gestational Diabetes and Blood Pressure Trajectories in Offspring - 25/09/2018
The health of pregnant mothers can influence the health of her offspring across their entire lifespan. In high income countries, as many as 1 of every 10 mothers experiences diabetes during pregnancy. The impact of exposure to diabetes during pregnancy on the heart health of offspring is poorly understood. We recently found that individuals exposed to diabetes in the womb were 2-3 times more likely to develop high blood pressure and heart disease in their teens and early 20s, compared to individuals not exposed to diabetes in the womb. We want to determine if this is something we can detect in childhood or adolescence and possible reasons why maternal diabetes could predispose children and adolescents to high blood pressure and heart disease later in life.