Which of the following is a risk factor for the infant of a mother with gestational diabetes?

• A. Hypoglycemia
• B. Small for gestational age (SGA)
• C. Hyperglycemia
• D. Insulin resistance

Answer: (A)

Neonatal hypoglycemia is the risk for infants of mothers with gestational diabetes. Maternal hyperglycemia crosses the placenta and stimulates the fetal pancreas to produce more insulin. After birth, the newborn loses the maternal glucose supply but still has high insulin levels, which drives glucose into cells and can cause low blood glucose. That combination makes hypoglycemia in the newborn the most common and important risk.

Small-for-gestational-age is unlikely here because gestational diabetes tends to cause larger, not smaller, babies due to fetal insulin promoting growth. Hyperglycemia in the newborn is less typical because the elevated insulin usually leads to low glucose after birth. Insulin resistance is a maternal condition, not a direct infant risk factor in this context.