New mums needed for type 1 diabetes study

What a mother-to-be eats, weighs and falls ill with could be contributing to a surge in children developing Type 1 diabetes, researchers say.

They are now leading a $1.5 million nation-wide study to pinpoint why so many children are developing the disease.

“As the incidence has doubled over the last 20 years, we suspect that there is quite a lot of those that could have been prevented,” Professor Jenny Couper from Adelaide University said.

Researchers believe changes in lifestyle and the way people treat their bodies could increase the risk.

“We’re eating different foods and our infections have changed, and so has our use of antibiotics,” Prof Couper said.

“Up to a third of women now when they get pregnant are overweight and that changes things, and the pregnancy, quite a bit.”

The study is looking for pregnant women whose unborn baby has a first-degree relative with type 1 diabetes – that is the baby’s mother, father or older sibling.

Newborn babies less than six months old with a first-degree relative with type 1 diabetes are also eligible for the study.

For more information and to participate in the study, visit the study's website or contact the study team at endia@adelaide.edu.au or call 08 8161 8747.