Determinants of Insulin Resistance in Infants at Age 1 Year: Impact of gestational diabetes mellitus

OBJECTIVE: The offspring of women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) display a propensity for the early accrual of cardiometabolic risk factors, including insulin resistance, in childhood and adolescence. Thus, we sought to identify early life determinants of insulin resistance in infants of women with and without GDM. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: In total, 104 full-term, singleton infants born to women with (n = 36) and without (n = 68) GDM were evaluated at age 1 year, with insulin resistance assessed by homeostasis model (HOMA-IR). RESULTS: HOMA-IR at 1 year did not differ between infants born to mothers with and without GDM (P = 0.74). The sole independent predictor of infant HOMA-IR in the non-GDM group was birth weight (t = 3.33, P = 0.002). In contrast, weight gain in the 1st year was the only independent predictor of HOMA-IR in infants of women with GDM (t = 2.19, P = 0.039). CONCLUSIONS: In the 1st year of life, weight gain in infants born to women with GDM is associated with insulin resistance, unlike in their peers.