Researchers from Wenzhou Medical College in China recently published a report on the status of neonatal iron deficiency in newborns born to mothers with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). The study was published in the Chinese journal Zhonghua Fu Chan Ke Za Zhi.
Between June 2008 and October 2011, information was collected from 64 women with gestational diabetes and 71 controls. All women were pregnant and later gave birth at a Wenzhou Medical College hospital. Though the study was designed to reveal a connection between GDM and iron deficiency in newborns, various other values such as glucose level, hemoglobin, and birth weight were also recorded.
Conclusion: Researchers found a solid connection between GDM and iron deficiency in newborns. Serum ferrous (iron) levels of neonates born to mothers with gestational diabetes were significantly lower than those measured in the control group born to healthy mothers.
Source: Ye Y, Wang M, Chen K, Xie AL. Investigation of iron deficiency status in the newborns of gestational diabetes mellitus women. Zhonghua Fu Chan Ke Za Zhi. 2013 Jan;48(1):25-8.
