The James Bay Cree of Canada have one of the highest recorded rates of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) among aboriginal people worldwide; the reasons for this elevated risk remain to be documented.
Our objective was to compare predictors and risk of GDM between the James Bay Cree and non-Native Canadians.
Risk for GDM was compared between Cree and non-Native women by 1) adjusting statistically for differences in age, parity, pregravid weight, and smoking status (n = 402 Cree, 7718 non-Natives), and 2) matching Cree women with non-Native women for age and pregravid weight (n = 394 Cree, 788 non-Natives). Dietary and physical activity information was available for a subset of Cree women (n = 152).
Age and pregravid weight were independent predictors of GDM in both Cree and non-Native women. After these predictors were controlled for, normal-weight (