You've probably wondered how you got type 2 diabetes. You may worry that your children will get it too. Unlike some traits, diabetes does not seem to be inherited in a simple pattern. Yet clearly, some people are born more likely to get diabetes than others.
Type 2 diabetes runs in families. In part, this tendency is due to children learning bad health habits — eating a poor diet and not exercising — from their parents. But there is also a genetic basis.
In general, if you have type 2 diabetes, the risk of your child getting diabetes is 1 in 7 if you were diagnosed before age 50 and 1 in 13 if you were diagnosed after age 50.
Some scientists believe that a child's risk is greater when the parent with type 2 diabetes is the mother. If both you and your partner have type 2 diabetes, your child's risk is about 1 in 2.
Source: American Diabetes Association
Good Neighbor Pharmacy Health Connection March 2013
Share with Friend
