MS risk for children of diabetic mothers

A new study from Denmark has found that children born to diabetic mothers might have a higher risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS).

Researchers looked at the association between different types of maternal diabetes – diabetes diagnosed before conception (pregestational) or diabetes diagnosed during pregnancy (gestational), and their offspring’s risk of MS.

Researchers also examined the risk of MS amongst children with diabetic fathers to see if risk association might reflect shared genetic or environmental factors rather than simply the mother’s diabetic condition.

The study found that the risk of MS for children whose mothers had pregestational diabetes was 2.3 times higher than for children whose mothers did not have diabetes. However, researchers found that there was not a statistically significant increase in risk for MS in children of mothers with gestational diabetes or for those with diabetic fathers.