Grant: Travel Awards - Institute Community Support

During pregnancy, complications such as diabetes, high blood pressure or a severe form of high blood pressure, known as preeclampsia, can have severe consequences to both mother and baby. Such complications can result in serious illness, hospital admission, abnormal baby growth, difficult and/or emergency delivery, preterm birth, and in the worst cases, death. The development of diabetes, high blood pressure or preeclampsia during pregnancy also affects long-term health, with both moms and babies more likely to develop cardiovascular and metabolic diseases later in life. Therefore, prevention of such complications is essential to improving the health of two generations. Exercise is well-known to be an effective means of preventing and treating both diabetes and high blood pressure in the general population, however, the effectiveness of exercise in preventing such complications during pregnancy is poorly understood. This study is a critical piece of the evidence base for the 2018 Canadian Guidelines for Physical Activity throughout Pregnancy (funded by CIHR). We reviewed all available previously published data to determine the effect of prenatal exercise on the development of diabetes, high blood pressure and preeclampsia during pregnancy. Through our analyses, we showed that women who exercised during their pregnancy reduced their odds of developing diabetes (by 38%), high blood pressure (by 39%) and preeclampsia (by 41%) compared to women that did not exercise. We also found that, in order to reduce the risk of such complications by 25%, pregnant women should accumulate at least 140 minutes of brisk walking per week. This study shows that prenatal exercise can reduce the odds of complications like diabetes, high blood pressure and preeclampsia during pregnancy, ultimately benefiting the short- and long-term health of both mom and baby.