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BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) risk factors are well established for Caucasians, but not for Asians. We hypothesized that nutrient intakes, plasma adipokines and/or gestational hormones might be linked to GDM development among pregnant Korean women. This study sought to identify new risk factors for GDM and adverse pregnancy outcomes according to body weight at prepregnancy. SUBJECTS/METHODS: All subjects were pregnant women visiting the Cheil General Hospital and Women's Healthcare Center between June 2006 and March 2009. Non-GDM (n = 531) and GDM (n = 215) participants were divided into normal-weight and overweight groups according to prepregnancy body mass index (BMI) above or below 23 kg/m2 at 24-28th week of gestation. At that time, glucose tolerance, insulin resistance as homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance, insulin secretory capacity as homeostatic model assessment for b-cell function, anthropometric measurement, nutrient intakes, and plasma levels of adipokines and gestational hormones were determined. RESULTS: GDM women gained more weight in early pregnancy than non-GDM among normal-weight women. GDM was mainly associated with increased insulin resistance in overweight women and decreased insulin secretory capacity in normal-weight women. Plasma visfatin and adiponectin were lower and progesterone levels higher in GDM than non-GDM independent of BMI while plasma resistin levels were higher in non-GDM, but not GDM, overweight women. Energy and saturated fat intakes were higher in GDM independent of body weight, whereas taurine intakes were lower in GDM than non-GDM only in normal-weight women. CONCLUSIONS: Low visfatin and adiponectin and high progesterone levels in the circulation and high energy and saturated fat intakes were common risk factors for GDM and pregnancy outcome such as large for gestational age. Daily reference intakes for energy and fat during pregnancy need to be re-evaluated according to prepregnancy BMI. doi: 10.1038/ejcn.2012.207 Keywords: gestational diabetes; weight gain; BMI; adipokines; prolactin; progesterone, INTRODUCTION Well-characterized risk factors for gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) include overweight and obesity, older maternal age, previous GDM and family history of diabetes; however, these known risk factors are not [...]

The increasing incidence of diabetes is a global concern. Current treatment modalities involving lifestyle modifications and pharmacotherapy are not effective in 50% of patients. Unripe apples contain polyphenols which are known to have antidiabetic effects. To verify the effects of unripe apple extract (UAE), the antioxidant activity of UAE was confirmed using a cell-free DPPH assay; and nitric oxide production and cytotoxicity were investigated in RIN-m5F cells. Biochemical analysis, oral glucose tolerance test, and histological analyses of the pancreas and liver were also conducted. UAE treatment induced hypoglycaemic conditions in alloxan-induced RIN-m5F cells. Further, UAE treatment showed antidiabetic effects in db/db mice by reducing plasma glucose and fructosamine levels without affecting the food intake and body weight. Additionally, UAE improved glucose tolerance and lipid parameters, and restored the pancreatic tissue in db/db mice. These results demonstrated the antidiabetic effects of UAE on alloxan-treated pancreatic islet-derived cells and in db/db mice, and suggested that UAE can be potentially used as a medicine and dietary supplement or functional food in antidiabetic therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]