Diabetes

This section covers research on infant feeding, diabetes and hypolgycaemia in relation to infant health. Studies on these topics are also available with reference to maternal health.

Breastfeeding and skin-to-skin contact as non-pharmacological prevention of neonatal hypoglycemia in infants born to women with gestational diabetes; a Danish quasi-experimental study

This study investigated the effect on infant blood glucose levels of an intervention consisting of early, frequent breastfeeding and two hours of immediate uninterrupted skin-to-skin contact following birth of term infants born to mothers with diet-treated gestational diabetes (GDM). The researchers found that infants suffering a hypoglycemic event within four hours after birth decreased from 22.7% in the control group to 10.2% in the intervention group. The mean number of breastfeeds in the intervention group (six hours) was 2.41 compared to 1.34 in the control group (seven hours), an increase of 80%.

Dalsgaard, BT, Rodrigo-Domingo, M, Kronborg, H, & Haslund, H (2019). Breastfeeding and skin-to-skin contact as non-pharmacological prevention of neonatal hypoglycemia in infants born to women with gestational diabetes; a Danish quasi-experimental study. Sexual & Reproductive Healthcare, 19: 1-8