Diet and Risk for Gestational Diabetes: Skip the Spuds?

In the U.S., an estimated one third of reproductive-aged women consume potatoes daily. With their rapidly absorbable starch content, potatoes have a high glycemic index — and potato intake has been linked to elevated fasting glucose and insulin resistance as well as excess risk for type 2 diabetes mellitus. In an analysis from the Nurses' Health Study, researchers used self-reported dietary information from >116,000 participants to determine whether potato consumption is associated with risk for gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Associations between potato consumption and GDM incidence were adjusted for age, race and ethnicity, family history of diabetes, cigarette smoking, physical activity, total energy intake, and body-mass index (BMI…