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Obesity and adiposity of 3- to 6-year-old children born to mothers with hyperglycaemia first detected in pregnancy in an urban South African setting

Abstract Background Understanding the association between maternal metabolic conditions in pregnancy and the risk of childhood overweight, a growing concern in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), helps to identify opportunities for childhood obesity prevention. Aim To assess the association between hyperglycaemia first detected in pregnancy (HFDP) (gestational diabetes mellitus [GDM] and diabetes in pregnancy [DIP]) and child obesity and adiposity in pre-school-aged children in South Africa, independently of maternal BMI. Subjects and methods Measurement of anthropometry and fat mass index (FMI) by the deuterium dilution method was done for 102 3–6-year-old children born to mothers with HFDP and 102 HFDP-unexposed children. Hierarchical regression analysis and generalised structural equation modelling (GSEM) were performed. Results The prevalence of overweight/obesity was 10.5% and 11.1% in children exposed to GDM and DIP, respectively, and 3.9% in the HFDP-unexposed group. Log-transformed FMI was significantly higher in the DIP-exposed group (β = 0.166, 95% CI = 0.014–0.217 p= .026), but not when adjusting for maternal pregnancy BMI (β = 0.226, 95% CI = 0.003–0.015, p = .004). GSEM showed significant total effects of maternal BMI and birth weight on FMI/BMI. Conclusions Maternal pregnancy BMI seems to play a greater role in the development of childhood adiposity than maternal hyperglycaemia, requiring further research and identifying maternal BMI as a relevant prevention target in our setting.