 Active pregnant women tend to stay healthier
Source: New York Reuters Health Date: 4/20/09
Women who exercise throughout pregnancy tend to stay healthier for decades, research shows.
Continuing a vigorous weight-bearing exercise program during pregnancy
appears
to be a marker of women who spontaneously maintain this practice over
time, resulting in a low cardiovascular risk profile when they approach
menopause, Dr. James F. Clapp III from Case Western Reserve University
School of Medicine in Cleveland suggests in a report in the American
Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
He conducted a long-term
study of a group of women initially studied serially before, during,
and for 1 year after pregnancy 18-20 years ago. Prior to becoming
pregnant, the women ran, cross-country skied, and/or performed aerobics
several times a week.
The analysis included 20 women who
continued exercise throughout pregnancy and 19 women who stopped or
reduced their exercise volume by at least 75 percent before the 12th
week of pregnancy. The women resumed a regular recreational exercise
program by 6 months after delivery.
Results showed that the
women who had exercised while pregnant were exercising at 82 percent of
their pre-pregnancy level, whereas the other women were exercising at
about 52 percent.
Compared to women who had decreased exercise
during pregnancy, those who maintained exercise while pregnant gained
less weight over time and tended to have a higher self-assessed body
image.
Those who exercised through pregnancy also had a lower
resting heart rate and lower levels of "bad" LDL cholesterol. They also
were more competent exercisers as demonstrated by shorter 2-mile run
times.
SOURCE: American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, November 2008.
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