Prenatal smoking exposure ‘can increase women’s risk of diabetes’

Women whose parents smoked during pregnancy are at an increased risk of developing diabetes, according to new US research.

To be presented at the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society in San Diego, the study looked at 1,801 diabetic females between the ages of 44 and 54 years who were born between 1959 and 1967 in the Child Health and Development Studies pregnancy cohort in California.

Prenatal smoking habits among mothers had a stronger association with their daughters' diabetes risk than similar smoking trends among fathers, a link that remained even after adjusting for parental race, diabetes and employment.

This adds to the body of evidence suggesting that prenatal environmental chemical exposure can contribute to adult diabetes.

Dr Michele La Merrill, assistant professor of the department of environmental toxicology at the University of California, Davis, said: "Medical doctors should consider advising pregnant smokers that emerging research suggests that tobacco smoking cessation in the home may benefit offspring."

In 2010, there were approximately 3.1 million people aged 16 or over with diabetes in England. By 2030, this figure is expected to rise to 4.6 million.