Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41987240›Full record

Trial reportNutrition journal2026

Body mass index, prebiotic supplementation during pregnancy and gestational diabetes mellitus risk: an effect modification analysis from a randomised controlled trial.

Rachelle A Pretorius, Thomas R Sullivan, Summer V M Walker, Johan Garssen, Jeffrey A Keelan, Desiree Silva, Susan L Prescott, Debra J Palmer

Abstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Nutrition journal, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Rachelle A PretoriusThe Kids Research Institute Australia, The University of Western Australia, Nedlands, WA, Australia. rachelle.pretorius@murdoch.edu.au.
Thomas R SullivanSAHMRI Women and Kids, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, Adelaide, SA, Australia.
Summer V M WalkerThe Kids Research Institute Australia, The University of Western Australia, Nedlands, WA, Australia.
Johan GarssenDivision of Pharmacology, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Science, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Jeffrey A KeelanSchool of Medicine, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia.
Desiree SilvaThe Kids Research Institute Australia, The University of Western Australia, Nedlands, WA, Australia.
Susan L PrescottThe Kids Research Institute Australia, The University of Western Australia, Nedlands, WA, Australia.
Debra J PalmerThe Kids Research Institute Australia, The University of Western Australia, Nedlands, WA, Australia.

Funding

National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) project grant ID1099480
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundPrebiotic dietary supplementation has been shown to improve glucose homeostasis in type 2 diabetes patients. The aim of this analysis was to determine whether pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) modifies the effect of prebiotic supplementation from mid-pregnancy on reducing the risk of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM).

methodsIn a double-blinded, randomised controlled trial, pregnant women < 21 gestational weeks were randomly assigned (1:1) to consume daily prebiotics (14.2 g galacto-oligosaccharides and fructo-oligosaccharides) or placebo (8.7 g maltodextrin) powder. An effect modification analysis was performed to assess the heterogeneity of the effect of prebiotic supplementation in relation to pre-pregnancy BMI on GDM diagnosis.

resultsBetween June 2016 and November 2021, 329 women were assigned to the prebiotic group (50.4%), and 323 (49.5%) were assigned to the placebo group. Overall, 288 of 652 women (44.2%) were classified as overweight/obese prior to pregnancy (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2). The distribution was balanced, with 146/329 (44.4%) randomised to the prebiotics group and 142/323 (44.0%) in the placebo group. Pre-pregnancy BMI modified the effect of prebiotic supplementation, with the intervention reducing GDM rates in women with a BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2 (prebiotic group 11.0% vs. control group 21.8%; adjusted relative risk 0.50; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.28 to 0.89) but not in women with a pre-pregnancy BMI < 25 kg/m2 (7.7–7% vs. 4.4%; adjusted relative risk 1.72; 95% CI 0.70 to 4.19; interaction p = 0.02).

conclusionPre-pregnancy BMI was found to modify the effect of prebiotic supplementation on GDM rates, with benefits observed in overweight and obese women. Our results highlight a target population for future randomised controlled trials to further investigate the effects of prebiotic supplementation during pregnancy on reducing the risk of GDM. 

trial registrationPrimary and secondary infant allergic disease outcomes of this randomised controlled trial have been previously published. The trial was registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry: ACTRN12615001075572, https://www.anzctr.org.au/on13/10/2015 .

Indexed as

Body Mass IndexDiabetes, GestationalDietary SupplementsPrebioticsAdultDouble-Blind MethodFemaleHumansObesityOverweightPregnancyRisk FactorsPrebioticsGestational diabetes mellitusMaternal dietObesity, prebioticsPregnancy

Identifiers

PMID41987240
PMCPMC13195933

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.