Current research from the Harvard School of Public Health in
Boston, Massachusetts, shows that women that were more physically active
and exercised on a regular basis prior to becoming pregnant and while
pregnant are less likely to develop diabetes during their pregnancy.
Gestational Diabetes
Women in the study of over 21,765 individuals that were physically active
prior to the pregnancy were 23 percent less likely to develop gestational
diabetes. This number is significant in the control and prevention of this
condition. In addition to controlling the gestational diabetes there are
other health benefits for both the mother and the baby that are identified
with a safe and effective exercise program prior to and during pregnancy.
Gestational diabetes occurs in approximately 4% of all pregnant women, and
will result in over 135, 000 reported cases of this condition per year. It
is not exactly known what causes gestational diabetes, but it is believed
that the hormones produced by the placenta prevent the mother’s body from
being able to absorb insulin. This insulin resistance may cause the mother
to need up to three times as much insulin to have the same metabolic
functioning.
Gestational diabetes usually goes away after the baby is born, but once
you have had gestational diabetes you have a 2 in 3 chance of having it
again in future pregnancies. Gestational diabetes is also a risk factor
for developing type 2 diabetes later in life.
Effects on the baby
Gestational diabetes begins late in the pregnancy, after the baby’s body
has already formed. The effects of the high levels of insulin in the
mother are directly related to the way that the baby begins to produce
insulin. Many babies will develop macrosomia, which is a condition that
causes the baby to store all the extra sugar as fat, and leads to birthing
problems, low blood glucose levels and respiratory problems.
How much exercise is needed?
Women that exercised vigorously by walking very briskly, cycling, swimming
or other strenuous physical activity were the least likely to develop
gestational diabetes. The next level included women that walked briskly
for at least 30 minutes per day or climbed the equivalent of 15 flights of
stairs per day. This group was 34 percent less likely to develop
gestational diabetes than those that walked at an easy pace for the same
amount of time. The women tested all had at least one pregnancy between
1990 and 1998. During this time there were 1492 cases of gestational
diabetes identified in the study group.
It is interesting to note that women that reported watching TV for more
than twenty hours per week were 2.3 times more likely to develop
gestational diabetes than those women that reported watching less than 2
hours of TV per week.
What does this mean?
These findings serve to underscore the importance of a good physical
exercise program prior to and during pregnancy to help control gestational
diabetes. Since gestational diabetes can lead to type 2 diabetes, and
further incidents of gestational diabetes it is important for women to be
aware of these findings.
Gestational Diabetes Diet - Good Pregnancy Nutrition Can Prevent Your Child Developing Diabetes:
Women that were more physically active and exercised on a regular basis prior to becoming pregnant and while pregnant are less likely to develop diabetes during their pregnancy.
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