One in eight mums in England is being diagnosed with gestational diabetes as new research showed a spike in the number of cases in five years with warnings of a 'vulnerability in the healthcare system'

One in eight mums in England is being diagnosed with diabetes while pregnant, according to new analysis which also revealed a sharp rise in cases among some ethnic minority groups and those living in deprived areas.

University researchers found a 60% rise in gestational diabetes diagnosis in five years and warned it is a "vulnerability in the healthcare system" which affects the "wellbeing of mothers and their children". The condition can cause long term health problems for both the babies and the mums. It can increase a women's risk of future cardiovascular disease and puts them at a higher risk of pre-eclampsia.

It can also lead to premature births, emergency Caesarean sections and babies born either larger or smaller than expected.

Experts say the findings highlight an "urgent need to strengthen maternity services" and improve support for women at highest risk. Gestational diabetes happens when women cannot produce enough insulin - a hormone that helps control blood sugar levels - to meet your extra needs in pregnancy. This leads to high blood sugar.

The NHS say there are few symptoms and it can happen at any stage of pregnancy, but is more common in the second or third trimester. Worryingly it can cause problems for both mum and baby during pregnancy and after birth. But the risks can be reduced if the condition is detected early and well managed, they say.

Earlier this year analysis by Diabetes UK said Type 2 diabetes is rising twice as fast in younger adult women than in older women. The charity also warned this could be down to gestational diabetes (GD). While the condition usually disappears after birth, patients face a higher risk of going on to develop type 2 diabetes.

The latest research to be released by researchers at the University of Edinburgh, found the rise in cases was highest among women of colour - 23% among Asian women - as well as among those living in deprivation (14%). Researchers said: "In 2022, two in every 21 white mothers received a diagnosis of gestational diabetes; for black mothers, the rate was two in every 13, and for Asian mothers, two in every nine."

These women also faced a higher risk of complications. For example, deprived women were 29% more likely to have a pre-term birth, while black mothers had 36% higher odds of having an emergency Caesarean. Asian women were also more than twice as likely to have a small baby.

Their study analysed five years of hospital care data in England. It included more than two million women who gave birth to 2.8 million babies across 184 hospitals between 2018 and 2022. It found one in eight was diagnosed with GD, compared to one in 12 in 2018. The estimate suggests "a relative increase of 60% in five years", researchers said.

They said: "The substantial increase in the incidence of gestational diabetes should be recognised as a vulnerability in the healthcare system, affecting the wellbeing of mothers and their children. Health policy must ensure that antenatal clinics can sustain the burden of this increased caseload and provide adequate care to women with a diagnosis of gestational diabetes."

Rebecca Reynolds, Professor of Metabolic Medicine at the University of Edinburgh, said: “This the first time we have managed to estimate the number of women with gestational diabetes in the UK. The rising number of women being diagnosed is concerning and impacts on maternity services delivery which are already challenged.

"Importantly, gestational diabetes also increases risk of future type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, so better preventative measures are needed to help support these women post partum.”

Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, Clinical Director at the British Heart Foundation, said: “Big data research studies like this, which can now analyse millions of healthcare records, are uncovering a concerning rise in conditions which raise people’s chances of having a future heart attack or stroke.

"Gestational diabetes often goes away after pregnancy, but it can increase women's risk of future cardiovascular disease. Healthcare professionals who want to fully understand people’s risk of heart attack and stroke should routinely ask women about risk factors unique to them, such as diabetes or high blood pressure in pregnancy – even if that pregnancy was decades earlier. If you are a woman who has had diabetes or high blood pressure during pregnancy, it is especially important to attend health checks when invited.”

The study is published in the journal BMJ Medicine.