Following a healthy diet after giving birth can help women with gestational diabetes to lower their risks of developing type 2 diabetes later, researchers reveal.
Two to 10 pregnant women in every 100 are affected by gestational diabetes or development of high blood sugar levels during pregnancy, according to an estimate from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Gestational diabetes puts women at higher risks (seven fold) of developing type 2 diabetes later compared to women not having any history of gestational diabetes.
However, researchers found the role played by a healthy diet rich in whole grains, fresh fruits, vegetables, legumes, poultry, nuts, seafood, with reduced consumption of red and processed meat in reducing the development of type 2 diabetes.
Cuilin Zhang and colleagues looked at 4,413 women with a history of gestational diabetes between 1991 and 2001. All the participants, part of the Nurses' Health Study provided details about their lifestyle and health in a questionnaire.
The details were later compared with three diets that promote healthy eating - Mediterranean-style diet, DASH diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) and Healthy Eating Index (healthy eating guidelines from United States Department of Agriculture).
Of the total participants, 491 developed type 2 diabetes about 14 years after experiencing gestational diabetes.
Following a healthy diet, similar to the above three diets were found cutting down the risks: Mediterranean-style diet (40 percent), Dash diet (46 percent) and Healthy Eating Index Pattern (57 percent).
"Our findings indicate that women with gestational diabetes aren't necessarily preordained to develop type 2 diabetes," senior author Dr. Zhang, of the Epidemiology Branch at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), said in a news release. "It appears they may have some degree of control. Sticking to a healthy diet may greatly reduce their chances for developing diabetes later in life."
Findings of the study have been published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
