2011-2012
News Release
REF NO.: 222
SUBJECT: Study shows birth by caesarean section may increase risk for Type 1 diabetes in children
DATE: July 30, 2012
Results of a study conducted by researchers in the Faculty of Medicine and the Newfoundland and Labrador Centre for Health Information indicates that delivery by caesarean section (c-section) is associated with childhood onset of Type 1 diabetes in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Dr. Leigh Anne Newhook, Discipline of Pediatrics in the Faculty of Medicine, teamed up with researchers Jennifer Phillips, Nicole Gill, Kohkan Sikdar from the centre, and Sharon Penney with the Janeway Pediatric Research Unit, to conduct this study, which was supported by a $30,000 Cox Award in 2009 from the Medical Research Endowment Fund (MRF). The results were recently published in the Journal of Environmental and Public Health.
Newfoundland and Labrador has one of the highest rates of Type 1 diabetes worldwide. Dr. Newhook said findings of this study indicate that birth by C-section was a significant risk factor for later development of childhood Type 1 diabetes. She said theories of why method of birth may be important include the role of early colonization of bacteria in the baby’s gut acquired during the birthing process and early development of the immune system.
“Studies have shown a difference between the compositions of gut microbiota in vaginally delivered children and those delivered by C-section,” she explained. “Another possible explanation is related to the hygiene hypothesis
which proposes that the risk of diabetes may be increased when children are not exposed to infections early in life – children delivered by C-section have decreased neonatal infections compared to children born vaginally.”
Cases of diabetes were identified using the Newfoundland and Labrador Diabetes Database (NLDD) for childhood diabetes, maintained by the Janeway Pediatric Research Unit. This database contains data on cases of Type 1 diabetes in children diagnosed from 1987 to the present.
The Live Birth System, an administrative database maintained by the centre and containing data on all live births in Newfoundland and Labrador from 1992 to the present, was used to obtain demographic data and clinical factors related to the risk factors of interest related to the pregnancy and birth.
Members of the Janeway Pediatric Diabetes Research Team have been studying the incidence of Type 1 diabetes in children in the province over the past two decades. Dr. Newhook said the team hopes to research this association in greater detail to delineate if it is the mode of delivery that is important or other perinatal factors that led to C-section delivery.
REF NO.: 222
SUBJECT: Study shows birth by caesarean section may increase risk for Type 1 diabetes in children
DATE: July 30, 2012
Results of a study conducted by researchers in the Faculty of Medicine and the Newfoundland and Labrador Centre for Health Information indicates that delivery by caesarean section (c-section) is associated with childhood onset of Type 1 diabetes in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Dr. Leigh Anne Newhook, Discipline of Pediatrics in the Faculty of Medicine, teamed up with researchers Jennifer Phillips, Nicole Gill, Kohkan Sikdar from the centre, and Sharon Penney with the Janeway Pediatric Research Unit, to conduct this study, which was supported by a $30,000 Cox Award in 2009 from the Medical Research Endowment Fund (MRF). The results were recently published in the Journal of Environmental and Public Health.
Newfoundland and Labrador has one of the highest rates of Type 1 diabetes worldwide. Dr. Newhook said findings of this study indicate that birth by C-section was a significant risk factor for later development of childhood Type 1 diabetes. She said theories of why method of birth may be important include the role of early colonization of bacteria in the baby’s gut acquired during the birthing process and early development of the immune system.
“Studies have shown a difference between the compositions of gut microbiota in vaginally delivered children and those delivered by C-section,” she explained. “Another possible explanation is related to the hygiene hypothesis
which proposes that the risk of diabetes may be increased when children are not exposed to infections early in life – children delivered by C-section have decreased neonatal infections compared to children born vaginally.”
Cases of diabetes were identified using the Newfoundland and Labrador Diabetes Database (NLDD) for childhood diabetes, maintained by the Janeway Pediatric Research Unit. This database contains data on cases of Type 1 diabetes in children diagnosed from 1987 to the present.
The Live Birth System, an administrative database maintained by the centre and containing data on all live births in Newfoundland and Labrador from 1992 to the present, was used to obtain demographic data and clinical factors related to the risk factors of interest related to the pregnancy and birth.
Members of the Janeway Pediatric Diabetes Research Team have been studying the incidence of Type 1 diabetes in children in the province over the past two decades. Dr. Newhook said the team hopes to research this association in greater detail to delineate if it is the mode of delivery that is important or other perinatal factors that led to C-section delivery.
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