This study aimed to identify and evaluate risk factors associated with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in mainland China.

Eight electronic databases were searched for literature published from January 2010 until December 2023. Heterogeneity was quantified using I2. Data were pooled by fixed or random effects models and expressed as odds ratio and 95% confidence intervals.

A total of 69 observational studies with an overall sample size of 2,138,032 Chinese women and 219,303 patients with GDM were included in the analysis. After adjusting confounders, older maternal age (OR = 1.12, 95% CI: 1.09-1.15), maternal age ≥35 years (OR = 1.96, 95% CI: 1.74-2.21), higher pre-pregnancy body mass index (OR = 1.24, 95% CI: 1.17-1.32), pre-pregnancy overweight (OR = 1.78, 95% CI: 1.64-1.92) or obesity (OR 2.52, 95% CI: 2.06-3.08), family history of diabetes (OR = 1.85, 95% CI: 1.58-2.17), history of GDM (OR = 4.09, 95% CI: 2.13-7.82), and elevated levels of fasting plasma glucose (OR = 2.54, 95% CI: 2.13-3.01), hemoglobin (OR = 1.47, 95% CI: 1.14-1.89) and serum triglycerides (OR = 1.69, 95% CI: 1.31-2.16) in early pregnancy were associated with an increased risk of GDM in mainland China. But gravidity ≥2 (OR = 1.06, 95% CI: 0.89-1.27), conception by assisted reproductive technology analyses (OR = 1.54, 95% CI: 0.95-2.51) were not associated with GDM, and parity ≥1 (OR = 0.88, 95% CI: 0.82-0.94) was related to lower risk of GDM. In available unadjusted studies, history of abortion (OR = 1.34, 95% CI: 1.31-1.37) increased risk of GDM, non-Han ethnicity (OR = 0.78, 95% CI: 0.59-1.03) and high school or lower education level (OR1.09, 95% CI: 0.94-1.26) showed no correlation with GDM.

The key risk factors for GDM in mainland China included older maternal age, maternal age ≥35 years, pre-pregnancy overweight or obesity, family history of diabetes, history of GDM, elevated levels of FPG, Hb, and serum TG in early pregnancy. Early identification and intervention for women at high risk should be performed to prevent the development of GDM.

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) constitutes a common metabolic disorder that could lead to deleterious short- and long-term complications in both the mother and her infant. Probiotic supplementation seems to exert diverse, healthy effects by acting as a preventive agent against various human diseases, including GDM.

The purpose of the current narrative review was to critically summarize and scrutinize the available clinical studies during the last 15 years (2008-2023) concerning the use of probiotic supplementation during pregnancy as a protecting agent against GDM.

A thorough and in-depth search was performed in the most accurate scientific databases, e.g., PubMed., Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar applying effective, and relevant keywords.

There are currently some clinical studies suggesting the potential beneficial impact of probiotic supplementation in the prevention and/or co-treatment of GDM. Nevertheless, there is a high heterogeneity amongst the available clinical studies concerning the dosage, the administration duration, the probiotic species types, the method designs and protocols, and the study populations.

Probiotic supplementation at conventional dosages and in combination with a balanced healthy diet, and lifestyle seems to reduce the the risk of developing GDM, while ameliorating the severity of its symptoms. Further clinical studies taking into account the above considerations should be performed to establish conclusive results, while the future meta-analyses should include studies with the feasibly lowest heterogeneity.

Mediterranean diet (MD) constitutes a commonly examined dietary model. It includes a plethora of bioactive ingredients with strong antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antithrombotic and anticancer properties. Several substantial studies support strong evidence that MD can exert preventing actions against human morbidity and mortality, promoting human well-being and quality of life. The present study aims to evaluate whether childhood MD compliance may be associated with socio-demographic, anthropometric, and lifestyle factors in children at the age of 6-9 years.

This is a cross-sectional survey on 3875 children aged 6-9 years old with their matched mothers. Qualified questionnaires were used to evaluate and collect by one-to-one interviews with trained professionals the above data.

Elevated MD adherence was observed only in 22.2% of the enrolled children, while 37.5% of children maintained intermediate MD adherence and 40.3% of children adopted lower MD levels. Children MD compliance was related at an independent manner with maternal education level, childhood anthropometric factors such as Body Mass Index (BMI), Waist circumference to Height ratio (WtHR), quality of life, and exclusively breastfeeding behaviors after adjusting for several possible confounders (p ˂ 0.05).

Elevated MD adherence of children aged 6-9 years old showed a lower obesity of overweight/obesity, including abdominal obesity. A higher maternal educational status and adopting exclusively breastfeeding practices were associated with greater levels of children's MD adherence, promoting their quality of life and well-being. Based on the present results, future prospective surveys need to be performed to evaluate if there is a causality relation concerning this topic.

Background/Objectives: Childhood obesity is a global health problem that affects at least 41 million children under the age of five. Increased BMI in children is associated with serious long-term health consequences, such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and psychological problems, including depression and low self-esteem. Although the etiology of obesity is complex, research suggests that the diet and lifestyle of pregnant women play a key role in shaping metabolic and epigenetic changes that can increase the risk of obesity in their children. Excessive gestational weight gain, unhealthy dietary patterns (including the Western diet), and pregnancy complications (such as gestational diabetes) are some of the modifiable factors that contribute to childhood obesity. The purpose of this narrative review is to summarize the most important and recent information on the impact of the diet and lifestyle of pregnant women on the risk of childhood obesity. Methods: This article is a narrative review that aims to summarize the available literature on the impact of pregnant women's diet and lifestyle on the risk of obesity in their offspring, with a focus on metabolic and epigenetic mechanisms. Results/Conclusions: Current evidence suggests that a pregnant woman's lifestyle and diet can significantly contribute to lowering the risk of obesity in their offspring. However, further high-quality research is needed to understand better the metabolic and epigenetic relationships concerning maternal factors that predispose offspring to obesity.

Ethnic differences associated with oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) phenotypes is less studied in Southeast Asian ethnicities, especially in women with hyperglycemia in pregnancy (HIP).

We retrospectively examined 3027 women at KK Women's and Children's Hospital in 2019. Of these, 508 (16.8%) women were diagnosed with HIP using the IADPSG (International Association of Diabetes and Pregnancy Study Groups) criteria at 24-28 weeks. OGTT phenotypes were classified into four mutually exclusive groups based on abnormal plasma glucose at (1) 0 hour only; (2) 1 hour only; (3) 2 hour only; (4) ≥2 timepoints (reference). Multinomial logistic regression was used to examine the association between ethnicity and OGTT phenotypes, adjusting for maternal age, parity, and first-trimester body mass index.

Overall HIP prevalence was 16.8%, highest among Indians (20.5%), then Chinese (18.3%) and Malays (14.2%). Indians (relative risk ratio (RRR) 3.05) and Chinese (RRR 2.33) were at higher risk of displaying a fasting-only phenotype compared with Malays. Chinese were at increased risk of displaying a 2-hour postprandial phenotype with an RRR of 2.88 as compared with Malays.

Unique OGTT phenotypes exist across ethnic groups among women who developed HIP in a multi-ethnic Asian population.

Waist-related measures are commonly used to classify central adiposity and related comorbidities. This classification may be essential among children, as it may identify the risk of future non-communicable diseases.

A cross-sectional study was conducted in the Eastern Cape province, South Africa, among 459 primary school learners aged 9-14 years. Height, weight and waist circumference (WC) were measured using standardised techniques recommended by World Health Organization (WHO). The anthropometric measurements, including body mass index (BMI), WC, waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) were computed and evaluated.

Most participants were girls (57.70%) with an average age of 11.20 ± 1.60 years. The average weight was 38.81 kg ± 10.49 kg with an average height of 144.16 (standard deviation [s.d.] = 10.37) cm. The sample had a BMI of 18.41 kg/m2 (s.d. = 3.19). The results showed, on average, WC of 62.10 cm ± 8.12 cm, WHR of 0.82 ± 0.15 and WHtR of 0.44 ± 0.05. Girls reported significantly higher BMI, WC and WHtR. Based on WHtR, the results showed the acceptable ability to classify children according to abdominal obesity, thus identifying their risk for comorbidities.

Overall body fat indicated by BMI and central obesity shown by waist-related anthropometric measures can play a significant role in classifying children in terms of their risk of comorbidities.Contribution: To prevent the risks of metabolic diseases in childhood, it is necessary to detect abdominal obesity early using WC-based anthropometric measurements, especially WHtR, to identify those at risk.

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) has been linked with adverse pregnancy outcomes. Vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene variants have been associated with diabetes mellitus susceptibility and related complications. This study assessed the association between VDR gene polymorphism (rs2228570) and GDM risk among pregnant Arab women. A total of 368 pregnant Saudi women who were screened for GDM at 24-28 weeks of gestation and genotyped for the VDR gene variant (rs2228570) were included in this cross-sectional study. Circulatory insulin levels, fasting blood glucose (FBG), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), and vitamin D (25(OH)D) were measured. There were 108 women with GDM and 260 women without GDM. The genotype frequency of women with GDM was CC 60.2 %, CT 33.3 %, TT 6.9 %, and CT + TT 39.8 %; for non-GDM women, were CC 61.1 %, CT 31.5 %, TT 6.9 %, and CT + TT 38.4 %. No association was found between the VDR gene variant (rs2228570-FokI) and GDM susceptibility after adjustment for covariates. Serum 25(OH)D had a significant inverse association with FBG (r = -0.49, p = 0.01) and HbA1c (r = -0.45, p = 0.03) among carriers of the TT-genotype. Furthermore, a significant inverse correlation was observed between serum 25(OH)D and HOMA-β (r = -0.20, p = 0.035) in individuals with the T-allele. Among pregnant Saudi women, glycemic indices appear to be influenced by vitamin D, suggesting a possible role it may play in mitigating the metabolic changes associated with GDM, particularly among individuals with specific genetic backgrounds. In our study population, rs2228570-FokI did not appear to be a significant contributor to GDM risk.

Childhood obesity is a growing global concern with far-reaching health implications. This study focuses on evaluating the knowledge and practices of physicians in Morocco regarding the link between maternal obesity and childhood obesity. Despite the increasing prevalence of childhood obesity worldwide, this issue remains inadequately addressed in the Moroccan context.

To assess the awareness and practices of physicians in Morocco concerning the connection between maternal obesity and childhood obesity.

The research encompasses a comprehensive survey of practicing physicians, revealing significant gaps in awareness and practices related to maternal obesity.

Notably, a significant portion of doctors do not provide adequate guidance to overweight pregnant women, highlighting the urgency for targeted educational programs.

In conclusion, this research illuminates critical areas for improvement in tackling childhood obesity in Morocco. By addressing these gaps, fostering awareness, and enhancing medical practices, the healthcare system can contribute significantly to preventing childhood obesity and improving the overall health of future generations.

Background Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a carbohydrate intolerance of variable severity with onset or first recognition during pregnancy; it does not include diabetics who become pregnant or women who become lactosuric. Knowledge of this problem among the public will promote its prevention, screening, and treatment strategies. This study aims to assess the knowledge of GDM regarding its risk factors, screening, treatment, and complications among women in the Al Qassim Province, Saudi Arabia. Method A cross-sectional study was conducted among 617 females aged 18 years and older through convenience sampling between October 2022 and January 2023. An online questionnaire was distributed using Google Forms (Google LLC, Mountain View, CA, USA) and WhatsApp (Meta, Menlo Park, CA, USA). Data was entered, cleaned, and analyzed using SPSS Statistics version 27 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). Informed consent was obtained from every participant, and the participants' information was kept confidential. Results In this study, 52.4% of the women (323/617) had moderate knowledge, and 27.6% (170/617) had excellent knowledge about GDM. Only 13.3% (n = 82) knew the optimum time (24 to 28 weeks of gestational age) for gestational diabetes screening in the absence of risk factors. Moreover, 44.6% (n = 275) knew that insulin is one of the treatments for gestational diabetes, while 45.4% (n = 280) knew that gestational diabetes increases a baby's risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) later in life. A statistically significant association was found between the development of GDM with multigravida (19.5%), a BMI of >25 (15%), and age 31 to 45 years (17.8%), with corresponding p-values of 0.001, 0.0001, and 0.0001, respectively. Conclusion In this study, almost four-fifths of the study population had moderate to excellent knowledge regarding GDM. However, there is a need to enhance knowledge about optimum screening time and insulin use for gestational diabetes treatment. Therefore, encouraging the existing population to learn more about diabetes education programs and health promotional measures should be undertaken periodically. Further studies are required to support this study's findings.

The Mediterranean diet (MD) has been related with a decreased probability of overweight/obesity as well as central obesity at all stages of the human life, decreasing the risk of diverse disease states and improving quality of life. Over the last few years, the prevalence of childhood overweight/obesity and especially abdominal obesity has highly increased worldwide, being associated with a higher likelihood of overweight/obesity as well as central obesity at the next stages of the life during adulthood. The purpose of the present study was to explore the relationship of MD compliance with sociodemographic, anthropometry and lifestyle features in pre-school children aged 2-5 years old.

This is a cross-sectional study, which includes 5188 pre-school children from diverse regions of Greece. Relevant questionnaires were applied to evaluate the sociodemographic features of the enrolled children. Anthropometric parameters were measured by relevant techniques. Qualified questionnaires were utilized for assessing several lifestyle factors such as physical activity, quality of life, breastfeeding practices, MD adherence, as well as the prevalence of childhood asthma and diabetes mellitus type I.

Of the enrolled children, 41.7% showed low MD compliance and 36.4% of them indicated moderated compliance, while only 21.9% of them showed a high MD adherence. Overweight/obesity was noted in 24.2% of the assigned children, while abdominal obesity was noticed in 18.2% of them. Higher MD compliance was related with an elevated prevalence of sex (boys, p = 0.0005), Greek nationality (p = 0.0088), rural type of residence (p = 0.0099), childhood overweight/obesity (p < 0.0001) and abdominal obesity (p < 0.0001), lower childbirth weight (p < 0.0001), increased physical activity (p = 0.0041), improved quality of life (p = 0.0008), exclusive breastfeeding (p < 0.0001), childhood asthma (p = 0.0001) and diabetes mellitus type 1 (p = 0.0002).

A higher MD adherence is associated with specific sociodemographic, better anthropometric, and beneficial lifestyle factors in pre-school children. However, MD compliance remains low or moderate in the vast majority of children aged 2-5 years old. Thus, future public strategies and policies should be performed to inform parents of the potential beneficial effects of MD against obesity and related chronic diseases at the next stage of their children's lives.