Exercise During Pregnancy Improves Children’s Lung Function

Scientists have discovered more proof that exercising while pregnant benefits both the mother and the unborn child.

According to a study presented today (Sunday) at the “virtual” European Respiratory Society International Congress, Dr. Hrefna Katrin Gudmundsdottir asserted that a study of 814 infants had for the first time established a link between infants born to physically sedentary women and those born to active women having inferior pulmonary function.

The results of prior research have shown that people with low lung function in childhood have a higher risk of developing asthma, a variety of other obstructive lung diseases, as well as reduced lung function later in life,” said Dr. Gudmundsdottir, a pediatrician and Ph.D. candidate at the University of Oslo in Norway. As a result, it is important to examine factors that may be connected to newborn lung function. It would be an easy and inexpensive strategy to improve the respiratory health of future generations if physical activity during pregnancy may reduce the likelihood of reduced newborn lung function.

According to our research, infants born to inactive moms were more likely than infants born to active mothers to belong to the group with the worst lung function.

There were only 47 newborns (5.8% of all 814 infants) with impaired lung function overall, of which 8.6% (25) of the 290 infants of sedentary women and 4.2% (22) of the 524 infants of active moms were in this group. Infants of active moms had slightly better lung function on average than infants of idle women.

We saw a pattern that emphasizes the importance of encouraging pregnant women and women who are childbearing to exercise. More research is necessary because there might be unrecognized factors that influence both maternal exercise and offspring lung function and could change the results, according to Dr. Gudmundsdottir.

The Avoiding Atopic Dermatitis and ALLergies in Children (PreventADALL) investigation, conducted at the Oslo University Hospital, as well as the stfold Hospital Trust, Norway, and the Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden, within December 2014 and October 2016, included 814 healthy infants born to women in Oslo and Stockholm as part of a larger group.

At between 18 and 34 weeks of pregnancy, the women were asked to respond to questions about their diet, lifestyle, socioeconomic status, and general health. At 18 weeks, the women reported how frequently they worked out, for how long, and at what strength. Following that, they were classified as being sedentary, moderately active, or extremely active.

In cases where the infants were about three months old, lung function assessments were made to examine regular breathing in relaxed, awake infants. This was accomplished by covering the baby’s mouth and nose with a face mask while recording the flow and amount of air inhaled and exhaled. The mask was fastened to the measuring apparatus, and we logged as many breaths as we could.

The ratio of Peak Tidal Expiratory Flow to Expiratory Time (PTFE/tE) was the most crucial parameter for this investigation. A low tPTEF/tE indicates a restriction in the flow of exhaled breath. There was no statistically significant difference between the 290 newborns of inactive moms and the 299 infants of very active mothers in terms of the average tPTEF/tE dimension, which was 0.391 for all 814 infants. The investigators evaluated the mother’s age, level of education, pre-pregnancy body mass index, use of tobacco during pregnancy, and whether or not she had previously given birth, as well as the presence of asthma and other allergy-related disorders in either the mother or the father.

The researchers failed to find a significant, ongoing increase in tPTEF/tE values from babies of sedentary mothers to babies of very active mothers. The researchers did discover, however, that infants of sedentary as opposed to active moms were more likely to have a tPTEF/tE of less than 0.25, which is statistically significant and indicates poor lung function.

While the concept of ‘poor’ pulmonary function is not generally recognized, studies, which include those from our own group, have demonstrated that children with a tPTEF/tE measurement less than 0.20 immediately after birth were more likely to have a history of asthma by the age of 10. Additionally, children whose lung function was in the bottom 50% of the group had a higher likelihood of having bronchial asthma both now, at age 10, and in the past, according to Dr. Gudmundsdottir.

Researchers will monitor the development of the infants to determine how lung function develops and how it connects to the progression of respiratory disorders like asthma.

Professor of Paediatric Respiratory and Environmental Medicine at Queen Mary University of London in the United Kingdom and Chair of the European Respiratory Society Tobacco Control Committee, Jonathan Grigg was not engaged in the study. He said: Nevertheless, the advantages of maintaining a healthy lifestyle while pregnant are well established, less has been discovered about how this influences the physical growth of the fetuses.

This study provides an intriguing nudge that moms’ increased physical activity is linked to significantly higher lung function in their offspring and, possibly, their long-term health. It will need a lot more investigation to confirm this connection. To be active in a cozy and accessible way, however, women must feel encouraged by their healthcare professionals.

It is also important to remember that refraining from using tobacco products before, during, and after pregnancy is the single most important thing moms can do for their health and the health of their unborn child. The strongest impact on lung health and function in both childhood and adult life is a smoke-free home.

Notes

1. The moderate intensity exercise routine was described as “rather sweaty and short of breath (arduous),” high intensity as “extremely perspiring and heavy breathing (very exhausting).” In contrast, low intensity was defined as “no sweat or shortness of breath (not exhausting).” They were regarded as sedentary if they just strolled, slowly, participated in low-intensity exercise, or did no workout. If they did moderate or high intensity exercise for up to 120 mins a week, they were defined as rather active, while those who did 120 minutes or even more a week were specified as very active.
   
2. Reduced lung function at birth and also the threat of asthma at ten years of age,” Geir Håland et al., NEJM, 2006, DOI: 10.1056/ NEJMoa052885.

Originally published on Scitechdaily.com. Read the original article.