Exercise May Reduce Risk of Preterm Birth

“Women who are physically active during pregnancy may lower their chances of delivering prematurely, according to findings from a Danish study. Using the Danish National Birth Cohort database, Mette Juhl, of the National Institute of Public Health, in Copenhagen, and colleagues analyzed physical activity information reported by 87,232 pregnant women between 1996 and 2002. Overall, about one-third of the women said they participated in physical exercise, such as swimming, or low-impact leisure time activity such as aerobics, dancing, walking or hiking, bicycling, and yoga during early pregnancy. Most of these women engaged in such activities for 1 to 2 hours per week, and somewhat fewer reported the same during later pregnancy, the investigators note.”

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