Summary

Up to 50% of women affected by Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) will progress to type 2 diabetes in the next five years. The proportion of women diagnosed with GDM is on the increase, and if GDM or type 2 diabetes continue to go undiagnosed and untreated, there is an increased risk of a number of maternal and fetal complications.

A Mediterranean diet (i.e., high intake of vegetables, fruit, olive oil and nuts and low consumption of red meat and processed foods) hasbeen shown to reduce lipid levels and cardiovascular adverse events in the non-pregnant high-risk population. The MERIT feasibility trial will  provide the rationale and foundation for a larger trial evaluating the effects  of a Mediterranean diet after pregnancy on the risk of developing type 2 diabetes in women who previously had GDM.

Our Research Partnership Team will contribute to MERIT by determining the feasibility of an economic evaluation for the trial.

Principal investigator: Shakila Thangaratinam, Queen Mary University London

Start date and duration: March 2019 for 20 months

Partners and collaborators involved: Bart’s Research Centre for Women’s Health (BARC); Queen Mary University of London