Leisure-time physical activity during pregnancy in the 2004 Pelotas Birth Cohort Study


Autoria(s): Domingues,Marlos Rodrigues; Barros,Aluísio J D
Data(s)

01/04/2007

Resumo

OBJECTIVE: Physical activity during pregnancy is a poorly investigated subject on population level. The study aimed to describe duration, type and frequency of leisure-time physical activity during pregnancy, and to explore its associated factors. METHODS: A population-based study was carried out during 2004 in Southern Brazil. A total of 4,471 mothers were interviewed soon after delivery. Physical activity was measured using a questionnaire, developed for the study. Results were obtained by Poisson regression. RESULTS: In the sample, 14.8% of women reported to engage in some type of physical activity prior to pregnancy and 12.9% during pregnancy. In the first trimester, 10.4% of all mothers engaged in some type of physical activity; 8.5% in the second trimester and 6.5% in the third trimester. Only 194 mothers (4.3%) were active during the whole pregnancy. In the adjusted analysis, leisure-time physical activity was positively associated with schooling, physical activity advice during prenatal care, and family income (p<0.001), being employed during pregnancy (p=0.05), and number of pregnancies (p=0.02). Walking was the most frequent activity. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of leisure-time physical activity is low among Brazilian pregnant women. Although physical activity is not perceived as being pregnancy-threatening, and current guidelines recommend it, this population's behavior does not seem to be changing. Active lifestyle for both pregnant women and future mothers should be encouraged.

Formato

text/html

Identificador

http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0034-89102007000200002

Idioma(s)

en

Publicador

Faculdade de Saúde Pública da Universidade de São Paulo

Fonte

Revista de Saúde Pública v.41 n.2 2007

Palavras-Chave #Exercise #Exertion #Pregnant women #Socioeconomic factors #Epidemiologic studies #Observational studies #Physical activity #Population-based studies #Physical fitness
Tipo

journal article