What a Major Study Reveals About Type 1 Diabetes and Pregnancy

As diabetes has become more common worldwide, more women with Type 1 diabetes are becoming pregnant. Understanding how Type 1 diabetes specifically affects pregnancy is important for doctors and patients planning for it. While we know that any diabetes in pregnancy carries risks, less has been clear about whether Type 1 and Type 2 create different patterns of complications. This new research directly compared the two over a decade to find out.

Researchers followed 169 pregnancies from 2014 to 2024: 114 involved women with Type 1 diabetes and 55 involved women with Type 2 diabetes. Women with Type 1 diabetes tended to be younger, have a lower body weight, and have lived with diabetes longer. They also had more cases of diabetic retinopathy—damage to blood vessels in the eye—both before pregnancy and worsening during it.

Babies born to mothers with Type 1 diabetes were more likely to be larger than expected for their gestational age and to need intensive care after birth. However, rates of miscarriage, early delivery, high blood pressure during pregnancy, and cesarean sections were similar between the two groups.

The study identified two key factors that mothers with Type 1 diabetes could potentially influence: blood sugar levels late in pregnancy and weight gain during pregnancy. When these were higher, babies were significantly more likely to experience complications requiring neonatal intensive care. This suggests that managing both glycemic control and gestational weight gain may reduce some of the risks associated with Type 1 diabetes in pregnancy.

Blood sugar levels before pregnancy also mattered—women with Type 1 diabetes in this study had higher HbA1c levels before conception, which may have contributed to the increased risks they experienced.

This research highlights why pre-pregnancy care is crucial for women with Type 1 diabetes. Working with your healthcare team to achieve better blood sugar control before becoming pregnant, and then maintaining careful management throughout pregnancy, may help reduce the chance of complications for both mother and baby. Every pregnancy is individual, and these findings should be discussed with your diabetes care team and obstetrician as part of your personalized pregnancy plan.

Source: Endocrinologia, diabetes y nutricion. Evidence type: PubMed indexed literature. Type1Cure is an information and intelligence hub, not a medical advice service. This article summarizes published research and does not provide diagnosis, treatment, or personal medical guidance. Always talk to your own care team before changing anything about your Type 1 diabetes management.