According to a study published in JAMA Network Open, women born by cesarean section were 11% more likely to be obese and had a 46% higher chance of developing type 2 diabetes (T2D) compared with women born by vaginal delivery.
In this study, the researchers looked at a group of 33,226 women who participated in the Nurses’ Health Study II. These women were born between 1946 and 1964, and of that group, 1089 were born via cesarean delivery (3.3%).
The study collected data on weight and diagnosis of T2D every 2 years from participants throughout the study window. The study’s final follow-up period was completed between 2013 and 2015. Pregnancy characteristics and mode of delivery data were collected form participants’ mothers.
The researchers used log-binomial and proportional hazards regression to examine the relationship between obesity and the development of T2D, taking into account maternal BMI and other potential confounding factors. The participants had an average age of 33.8 years at baseline.
In the United States, more than 1.2 million cesarean deliveries are performed yearly. This makes it the most common inpatient surgical procedure and it accounts for nearly one-third of births nationwide.
However, many cesarean deliveries in the United States do not have clear indications, which raises concern about excess maternal and newborn morbidity and mortality resulting from unnecessary caesarean deliveries.
The study found that, on average, mothers who gave birth via cesarean section had a higher BMI during pregnancy, were older, more likely to have preeclampsia, and gave birth to a child with low birth weight than women who delivered vaginally.
The study found that the overall risk of obesity by the end of follow-up was 36.5% for women who were born vaginally.
By the end of the follow-up period, the cumulative risk of obesity was 39.9% (434 out of 1089) for women born by cesarean delivery. The incidence of T2D per 10,000 person-years was 10.4 for participants born by vaginal delivery, and 14.1 for those born by cesarean delivery.
The risks of obesity and type 2 diabetes associated with cesarean delivery were similar in magnitude across all low-risk categories for cesarean delivery, based on maternal characteristics, researchers said.
Though it is not plainly evident, these findings may be useful for men or people born today. The root causes for the connection between cesarean section delivery, obesity, and T2D development are still not fully understood. However, there is increasing evidence to support the hygiene theory and changes in the microbiome.
The gut microbiota has a significant impact on how much energy the host can harvest from their diet. Changes in the gut microbiota can be associated with the host’s adiposity and glucose metabolism. Neonates delivered vaginally are rapidly colonized by microbes from their mother’s birth canal and feces.
Studies have found that gut microbiota composition differs depending on whether a child is delivered vaginally or via C-section. These differences have been observed in infants and children up to 7 years of age, but it is not clear if they last into adulthood.
Researchers say that more studies are needed to confirm the link between cesarean delivery and type 2 diabetes, but the findings suggest that c-sections may be a risk factor for the condition.
The link between cesarean delivery and adult obesity and type 2 diabetes was investigated in a group of women. The findings, published online in the journal JAMA Network Open, showed a significant association between these two conditions.
There is an association between birth by cesarean delivery and obesity and type 2 diabetes among adult women, according to a study published in JAMA Network Open.
