Chronic Disease & You

Diabetes and high blood pressure (Hypertension) are the two most common chronic diseases that complicate pregnancy and child birth. Failure to properly manage these conditions, results in medical complications which affect both the mother and the baby. 

High blood pressure

diabetes Mellitus

Hypertension Prevalence

 

The prevalence of hypertension among young adults and individuals of child-bearing age (roughly 15 to 49 years) in South Africa is high, with about 27% of adults under 40 affected, and elevated blood pressure tracking strongly from adolescence into these reproductive years. 

  Hypertensive disorders during pregnancy (such as gestational hypertension and preeclampsia) heavily impact young and teenage mothers in South Africa, where gaps in public health monitoring can worsen maternal and postpartum outcomes.  Elevated Blood Pressure (EBP): Cohort studies like Soweto’s Birth to Twenty Plus project found that elevated or high blood pressure affects up to 47% of young adult females by their late 20s. 

 

Core Risk Factors

  • Increasing BMI and obesity rates are directly linked to climbing blood pressure levels in young South African women.
  • Use of certain injectable contraceptives has been correlated with elevated blood pressure trajectories in young adult females.
  • High blood pressure often originates or establishes trajectories during childhood and adolescence due to lifestyle and structural factors.

 

Diabetes & You

 

The overall prevalence of diabetes among adult women in South Africa is approximately 15.5%, with specific gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) ranging widely from 1.6% to 25.8% depending on diagnostic criteria and regional screening methods.

 

General Prevalence in Women

  • Adult women: General population studies show women face a higher diabetes prevalence (15.5%) compared to men (11.9%). 
  • Pregnancy self-reports: National surveys indicate about 3% of women of childbearing age (15–49 years) self-report having diabetes during pregnancy. 
  • Pre-diabetes burden: Up to 67% of adults show signs of pre-diabetes, indicating a high risk pool moving into childbearing years.

Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) prevalence in South African studies spans 1.6% to 25.8% due to varying screening protocols and rising obesity rates (about 69% of South African women are overweight or obese). A major study at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital found a GDM prevalence of 9.1% among black South African pregnant women using standardized WHO criteria.