SUMMARY AEEROBIC Aerobic exercise during pregnancy improves health-related quality of life: a randomised trial

I have chosen the journal Aerobic exercise during pregnancy improves health-related quality of life: a randomised trial written by Ana Victoria Montoya Arizabaleta, Lorena Orozco Buitrago, Ana Cecilia Aguilar de Plata, Mildrey Mosquera Escudero and Robinson RamrezVlez from University of Valle, Colombia as my journal to summaries. This journal was written to explain and discuss the advantages of aerobic exercise for pregnant women. This journal is written after the author conducted several studies. A randomized trial was conducted. Participants were recruited from the prenatal care services of three hospitals in Cali, Colombia. Women who were interested in the study were invited to a screening visit at one of the centers. Socio demographic data were recorded and a detailed physical examination was performed by a physician to determine eligibility. After confirmation of eligibility, the women were randomly allocated to one of two groups: aerobic exercise plus usual prenatal care, or usual prenatal care only. Randomization was performed using a permuted block design with a block size of 8 and exp:con ratios of 3:5, 4:4 or 5:3. Participants in the exercise group commenced the program when each block was completed, allowing supervised group exercise sessions comprising three to five women. Baseline measures were taken the day before the exercise program commenced and outcomes were measured the day after the program was completed. The investigator responsible for randomly assigning participants to treatment groups did not know in advance which treatment the next person would receive (concealed allocation) and did not participate in administering the intervention or measuring outcomes. The investigators responsible for assessing eligibility and baseline measures were blinded to group allocation. Participants and therapists administering the intervention were not blinded. The investigators responsible for outcome assessment were blinded to group allocation. All investigators received training before the trial and reminders during the trial regarding the protocol, measurement procedures, and methods and importance of maintaining blinding. Measurements were taken at baseline (Month

0, which corresponded to between 16 and 20 weeks of gestation) and at the end of the threemonth intervention period (Month 3, week 2832 of gestation). In this journal we also learn that aerobic exercise strengthens your heart and lungs and helps maintain muscle tone. As long as you choose exercises that are low-impact, meaning no jumping, high kicks, leaps, fast running, and so forth and keep one foot on the ground at all times to minimize stress on your joints, you should be able to continue your routine throughout most of your pregnancy Authors concluded aerobic exercise which brings many benefits which are when you are fit, you're more likely to give birth to a leaner baby. With regular aerobic exercise, the size of the placenta increases, and so does its capacity to exchange oxygen and CO2, and nutrients and waste products. Babies born to fit moms have greater cardiovascular capacity from the start. Lean babies are less likely to become overweight or develop diabetes as adults. If you breastfeed, improved immune function will carry over to your baby for the first several months of life. Prevents excessive weight gain during pregnancy, which reduces both your risk of gestational diabetes and your baby's risk of developing diabetes as an adult. Fit moms bounce back into shape after delivery much more quickly than sedentary women. Provides needed stamina for labor and delivery As a conclusion regular aerobic exercise during pregnancy appears to improve physical fitness, but the evidence is insufficient to infer important risks or benefits for the mother or baby. Aerobic exercise is physical activity that stimulates a person's breathing and blood circulation. The review found that pregnant women who engage in vigorous exercise at least two to three times per week improve (or maintain) their physical fitness, and there is some evidence that these women have pregnancies of the same duration as those who maintain their usual activities. There is too little evidence from trials to show whether there are other effects on the woman and her baby. The trials reviewed included non-contact exercise such as swimming, static cycling and general floor exercise programs. Most of the trials were small and of insufficient methodologic quality, and larger, better trials are needed before confident recommendations can be made about the benefits and risks of aerobic exercise in pregnancy.

PREPARED BY

MUHAMAD NAZRUL B ZAINOL ABIDIN 2011834644