Wednesday, April 4, 2018

Exercising during pregnancy can shorten labour by almost an hour

bella fashion bd April 04, 2018 Baby , 0 Comments

While it's often hard to stay motivated to exercise during pregnancy, particularly as your belly gets bigger and bigger, a new study suggests it might be worth the effort, reducing the length of labour by almost an hour.

The research, published in the European Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology looked at the influence of an exercise program completed during pregnancy on the duration of labour in healthy pregnant women.

A team from the Technical University of Madrid randomly assigned 508 pregnant women into either a control group or an exercise group. Mums assigned to sweat during their pregnancy completed a moderate aerobic exercise program three days a week.

As well as examining the length of labour of mums in the two groups, researchers also looked at other factors including mode of delivery, gestational age, maternal weight gain, pre-term delivery, use of epidural, and birth weight.

The team found that mums who exercised three times a week had labours that were on average 50 minutes shorter. "A supervised physical exercise program throughout pregnancy decreased the duration of the first phase of labor as well as total time of the first two phases together, leading to a decrease in total labor time," the authors write.

In addition, women who exercised were less likely to have an epidural and less likely to have babies with neonate macrosomia or bubs over eight pounds.

It's not the first time research has highlighted the benefits of staying active during pregnancy, when it comes to duration of labour. An observational study published in the journal Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica in 2009, found that first time mums with good aerobic fitness also had shorter labours.

In their guidelines on exercise during pregnancy, The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG) note that: "all women with uncomplicated pregnancy should be encouraged to participate in aerobic and strength conditioning exercise."

RANZCOG advises that women should be encouraged to continue their established exercise routines during pregnancy, while inactive women can commence exercise within certain parameters. "While obese or previously inactive women, and women with pregnancy complications, may benefit from exercise it is important that evaluation on an individual basis is undertaken before commencing an exercise program that can be followed during pregnancy and beyond," the organisation notes.

RANZCOG specifically advises:

Frequency: Pregnant women should aim to be physically active on most, but preferably all days of the week.
Duration: Exercise sessions should be around 30 mins. "While no evidence exists for an upper limit to exercise duration, it is probably unwise to extend exercise duration beyond 60 minutes per session, unless the intensity is relatively light," they note.
Intensity of exercise will depend on a woman's pre-pregnancy fitness and exercise regime. "For previously inactive women commencing an exercise program during pregnancy, maintaining a 'moderate' intensity is adequate to obtain benefits for health and well-being. Likewise, a woman accustomed to moderate intensity exercise pre-pregnancy should aim to maintain this level of intensity during pregnancy," RANZCOG notes.
Mode: The organisation recommends women engage in both aerobic and strengthening exercises. This can include walking at a "brisk" pace, swimming or use of a stationary bike. In addition, "Women should aim for two sessions of strengthening exercises per week, on non-consecutive days, covering the main muscle groups of the body."
Expectant women should also be aware of these warning signs to cease exercise and seek medical attention: