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EMBARGOED UNTIL
12:01 AM EDT/Friday, April 17, 2009
Contact: Donna Krupa
Newsroom: (504) 670-4525 or 4526
Office: (301) 634-7209
Cell: (703) 967-2751
dkrupa@the-aps.org
Differences Among
Exercisers And Non-Exercisers During Pregnancy
Results
of a continuing study suggest that exercising during pregnancy does not
require “stealing” time from other activities
NEW ORLEANS—No one doubts that mothers –
especially pregnant mothers – are among the busiest people on earth. And
while the benefits of exercise for these women and their developing fetuses
are widely known, many expectant mothers do not exercise. A survey examining
daily activities of moms-to-be will soon be released as part of a larger
study looking at the effect of maternal exercise on fetal development. The
results suggest, among other things, that exercising during pregnancy does
not require “stealing” time from other activities.
The study was conducted by
Linda E. May, Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences (KCUMB),
Kansas City, MO; Alan Glaros, KCUMB, and Kathleen M. Gustafson, University
of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS and is entitled Differences
Among Exercisers and Non-Exercisers During Pregnancy. The team will
discuss its study at the 122nd Annual Meeting of the American Physiological
Society (APS;
www.the-aps.org/press), which is part of the Experimental Biology 2009
scientific conference. The meeting will be held April 18-22, 2009 in New
Orleans.
The Study and Background
Based on previous research findings, over one-third (36
percent) of pregnant moms cite time as the main reason for not participating
in regular aerobic exercise. With this in mind, the researchers wanted to
determine if women who exercised during pregnancy spent less time doing
specific activities in order to have time for exercise and to determine if
there were any trends between mothers who exercised during pregnancy and
those that do not.
A highly reliable and validated Modifiable Activity
Questionnaire (MAQ) was used to survey pregnant mothers. Survey questions
pertained to daily activities (ie. employment, exercise, amount of sleep)
and demographics.
Researchers analyzed the results from thirty-eight
pregnant mothers (21 exercisers and 17 non-exercisers). All women were
healthy, non-smokers between 23 and 39 years of age. The sample population
includes women with various education levels, employed in and out of the
home, and who live in the Kansas City area metro. Exercisers participated in
moderate or vigorous aerobic activity at least 30 minutes three times per
week throughout the pregnancy. Control mothers did not.
Results
There were no differences between groups based on
maternal age, education levels, employment, number of children, fetal
gender, and even maternal height. Although these groups were similar in
many ways, there were significant differences between groups and trends as
well:
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Although the most common reason for not exercising
during pregnancy is ‘lack of time,’ 85% of control women spend more than
1 hour at the TV or computer and 77% spend more than 1 hour
read/writing/studying.
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There was a trend for the exercisers to have
slightly more sleep and reading time.
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There was a trend for non-exercisers to have
slightly more TV/computer time.
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BMI and maternal pre-pregnancy weight was
significantly lower in the exercisers. Additionally, women with more
education had lower BMIs, in general for both groups.
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For non-exercising pregnant women, employment was a
factor in maternal weight and BMI, such that those who were worked
outside of the home had lower BMIs.
Conclusion
The researchers theorize that pregnant mothers who
exercise may manage their time more effectively than non-exercisers.
Because exercisers sleep and read slightly more than non-exercisers and
spend slightly less time on the computer, researchers conclude that
exercisers are simply more likely to fit exercise into their day.
Non-exercisers may suffer from a perception that they lack time to exercise,
when they need to manage their time differently to fit more physical
activity into their day.
According to Dr. May, “if a pregnant mother does some
type of physical activity while watching TV or talking on the phone, or
parks her car at the farthest point from the store each time, she will
increase her daily physical activity and ultimately improve her health and
the health of her baby.” Such a small step can provide benefits to mom and
the fetus, and take no extra time from the daily routine.”
********
Physiology
is the study of how molecules, cells, tissues and organs function to create
health or disease. The American Physiological Society (APS;
www.The-APS.org/press) has been an integral part of this
discovery process since it was established in 1887.
NOTE TO EDITORS: The APS annual meeting is part
of the Experimental Biology 2009 (EB ’09) gathering and will be held April
18-22, 2009 at the New Orleans Convention Center. To schedule an interview
with Dr. May, please contact Donna Krupa at 301.634.7209 (office),
703.967.2751 (cell) or
DKrupa@the-APS.org.
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