A study indicates a unique risk profile for Asian – white couples. A research by Lucile Packard Children's Hospital and Stanford University School of Medicine shows that pregnant Asian women who cohabitate with white partners have 4% incidence of gestational diabetes whereas only 1.6% couples in which both the partners are white showed the risk.  

According to the US Census Bureau 14.3 percent of Americans are reported to be of the Asian race. 

"There's great heterogeneity in our country; there are people of many different races and backgrounds," study co-author Dr. Yasser El-Sayed said in a statement. "Gaining better insight into the risks facing specific populations provides for better counseling and better prenatal care."

The study is based on data from white, Asian and Asian-white couples who delivered at the Johnson Center for Pregnancy and Newborn Services at Packard Children's from 2000 to 2005 i.e. 5,575 white, 3,226 Asian and 868 Asian-white couples. 

It was also observed that Asian women whose partners are white are also more likely to have a Cesarean delivery (33%) compared to couples with a white mother and Asian father (23%). This is because the pelvis of Asian women tends to be smaller than the white women.