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Risk factors

By Mayo Clinic staff

Risk factors for diabetes depend on the type of diabetes.

Risk factors for type 1 diabetes
Although the exact cause of type 1 diabetes is unknown, family history may play a role. Your risk of developing type 1 diabetes increases if you have a parent or sibling who has type 1 diabetes. Other factors have been proposed, as well, such as exposure to a viral illness.

Risk factors for prediabetes and type 2 diabetes
Researchers don't fully understand why some people develop prediabetes and type 2 diabetes and others don't. It's clear that certain factors increase the risk, however, including:

  • Weight. The more fatty tissue you have, the more resistant your cells become to insulin.
  • Inactivity. The less active you are, the greater your risk. Physical activity helps you control your weight, uses up glucose as energy and makes your cells more sensitive to insulin.
  • Family history. Your risk increases if a parent or sibling has type 2 diabetes.
  • Race. Although it's unclear why, people of certain races — including blacks, Hispanics, American Indians and Asian-Americans — are at higher risk.
  • Age. Your risk increases as you get older, especially after age 45. Often, that's because you tend to exercise less, lose muscle mass and gain weight as you age. But type 2 diabetes is increasing dramatically among children, adolescents and younger adults.
  • Gestational diabetes. If you developed gestational diabetes when you were pregnant, your risk of developing prediabetes and type 2 diabetes later increases. If you gave birth to a baby weighing more than 9 pounds (4 kilograms), you're also at risk of type 2 diabetes.
  • Polycystic ovary syndrome. For women, having polycystic ovary syndrome — a common condition characterized by irregular menstrual periods, excess hair growth and obesity — increases the risk of diabetes.

Other conditions associated with diabetes include:

  • High blood pressure
  • High levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or "bad," cholesterol
  • Low levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or "good," cholesterol
  • High levels of triglycerides, another fat in the blood

When these conditions — high blood pressure, high blood sugar and abnormal blood fats — occur together with obesity, they are associated with resistance to insulin.

Risk factors for gestational diabetes
Any pregnant woman can develop gestational diabetes, but some women are at greater risk than are others. Risk factors for gestational diabetes include:

  • Age. Women older than age 25 are at increased risk.
  • Family or personal history. Your risk increases if you have prediabetes — a precursor to type 2 diabetes — or if a close family member, such as a parent or sibling, has type 2 diabetes. You're also at greater risk if you had gestational diabetes during a previous pregnancy, if you delivered a very large baby or if you had an unexplained stillbirth.
  • Weight. Being overweight before pregnancy increases your risk.
  • Race. For reasons that aren't clear, women who are black, Hispanic, American Indian or Asian are more likely to develop gestational diabetes.
Complications Causes
References
  1. All about diabetes. American Diabetes Association. http://www.diabetes.org/about-diabetes.jsp. Accessed Dec. 25, 2008.
  2. Collazo-Clavell ML, ed. The Essential Diabetes Guide. Rochester, Minn.: Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research; 2008.
  3. Diagnosis and management of type 2 diabetes mellitus in adults. Bloomington, Minn.: Institute for Clinical Systems Improvement. http://www.icsi.org/diabetes_mellitus__type_2/management_of_type_2_diabetes_mellitus__9.html. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  4. Gastroparesis: What you should know. American Academy of Family Physicians. www.aafp.org/afp/20080615/1703ph.html. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  5. McCulloch DK. Overview of medical care in adults with diabetes mellitus. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  6. Your guide to diabetes: Type 1 and type 2. National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse. http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/type1and2/YourGuide2Diabetes.pdf. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  7. Diabetes in pregnancy. March of Dimes. http://search.marchofdimes.com/cgi-bin/MsmGo.exe?grab_id=6&page_id=12648448&query=gestational+diabetes&hiword=DIABETIC+GESTATION+GESTATIONS+diabetes+gestational+. Accessed Jan. 29, 2009.
  8. Gestational diabetes. American Diabetes Association. http://www.diabetes.org/gestational-diabetes.jsp. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  9. Am I at risk for type 2 diabetes? National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse. http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/riskfortype2/risk.pdf. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  10. Eisenbarth GS, et al. Type 1 diabetes mellitus. In: Kronenberg HM, et al. Williams Textbook of Endocrinology. 11th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2008. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/115481400-2/0/1555/195.html#4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-2911-3..50033-9--p1391. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  11. Diabetes and pregnancy. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. http://www.acog.org/publications/patient_education/bp051.cfm. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  12. Managing gestational diabetes. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. http://www.nichd.nih.gov/publications/pubs/gest_diabetes/. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  13. Am I at risk for gestational diabetes? National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. http://www.nichd.nih.gov/publications/pubs/upload/gest_diabetes_risk_2005.pdf. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  14. Diabetes. In: Williams Obstetrics. 22nd ed. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill; 2005. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.. aspx?aID=738493. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  15. Pancreas transplantation. American Diabetes Association. http://www.diabetes.org/type-1-diabetes/pancreas-transplants.jsp. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  16. Other diabetes medications. American Diabetes Association. http://www.diabetes.org/type-2-diabetes/oral-medications.jsp. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  17. Tetanus disease in-short (Lockjaw). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd-vac/tetanus/in-short-both.htm. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  18. Smoking. American Diabetes Association. http://www.diabetes.org/type-1-diabetes/smoking.jsp. Accessed Jan. 1, 2009.
  19. Eye complications. American Diabetes Association. http://www.diabetes.org/type-2-diabetes/eye-complications.jsp. Accessed Jan. 6, 2009.
  20. Saller A, et al. Diabetes and osteoporosis. Aging Clinical and Experimental Research. 2008;20:280.
  21. American College of Endocrinology: Task Force on Prediabetes. American College of Endocrinology consensus statement on the diagnosis and management of pre-diabetes in the continuum of hyperglycemia - When do the risks of diabetes begin? http://www.aace.com/meetings/consensus/hyperglycemia/hyperglycemia.pdf. Accessed Jan. 9, 2009.
  22. International Expert Committee. International Expert Committee report on the role of the A1C assay in the diagnosis of diabetes. Diabetes Care. 2009;32:1.

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June 13, 2009

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