Prenatal exercise lowers risks of C-sections, higher birth weights
- Date:
- May 12, 2015
- Source:
- University of Alberta
- Summary:
- Pregnant women who exercise can significantly lower the risk of undergoing cesarean sections and giving birth to large babies, a study has found. Prenatal exercise has been suggested to be a means to prevent childhood obesity through a "normalization" in birth weight (ie. reducing the risk of having a large baby at birth).
- Share:
Pregnant women who exercise can significantly lower the risk of undergoing Caesarean sections and giving birth to large babies, a University of Alberta study has found.
Prenatal exercise has been suggested to be a means to prevent childhood obesity through a "normalization" in birth weight (ie. reducing the risk of having a large baby at birth). University of Alberta researchers conducted a meta-analysis to analyze 28 randomized control studies encompassing 5,322 women that looked at the influence of maternal exercise on baby outcomes.
"We found that women who exercised had a 31 per cent reduction in the risk of having a large baby without changing the risk of having a small baby or an earlier baby," said lead researcher Margie Davenport, an assistant professor in the Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation. "Further, the risk of having a Caesarean section was reduced by 20 per cent." The findings, recently published in Obstetrics & Gynecology, are important because babies who are born large tend to be heavier as children and into adulthood.
Story Source:
Materials provided by University of Alberta. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
- Henry W. Wiebe, Normand G. Boulé, Radha Chari, Margie H. Davenport. The Effect of Supervised Prenatal Exercise on Fetal Growth. Obstetrics & Gynecology, 2015; 125 (5): 1185 DOI: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000000801
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