Diabetes Risk Increases in Black Women who are Born Underweight

Black women who are born with a low birth weight may have an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to researchers at Boston University.

Findings revealed the higher rates of low birth weight among African Americans and why this may increase the risk of this health issue.

For the study, researchers examined more than 21,000 women participating in the Black Women's Health Study. They analyzed 16 years worth of data and found that women born with low birth weight or very low birth weight were 13 percent and 40 percent more likely to deal with type 2 diabetes than those born at a healthy range.

The study results are the first to examine how African Americans with low birth weights are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes compared to people of other ethnicities.

"African American women are at increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes, and also have higher rates of low birth weight than white women," lead researcher Edward Ruiz-Narváez, ScD, assistant professor of epidemiology at Boston University School of Public Health, said in a news release. "Our study shows a clear relationship between birth weight and diabetes that highlights the importance of further research for this at-risk group."

More information regarding the findings can be seen via the journal Diabetes Care.