Maternal Diabetes and the Consequences for her Offspring

In pregnancy, there is an inevitable sharing of maternal nutrients through transport via the placenta. Changes in the maternal system affect the fetal plasma composition and thus the development of fetal organs. Alterations in the fetal environment that affect fetal development have been hypothesized to have consequences in postnatal life. Maternal diabetes, which is associated with high blood glucose levels (hyperglycemia), is one such compromising environment; excess glucose is shunted into the fetal system which then must make adaptations to the altered environment. This results in a variety of fetal, neonatal, and postnatal consequences for the offspring of diabetic mothers including very large size at birth, birth defects, various short-term and long-term complications, an