Exercise and Miscarriage Risk

Posted by Brenda Lane Mar 9, 2008

If you are pregnant and trying to figure out whether or not to exercise, here is new information about exercise and how it may increase your risk of miscarriage.

Danish researchers interviewed over 90,000 women during pregnancy from 1996-2002. (The study appears in the November 2007 issue of the British Journal of Obstetrics.) A relationship was found between women who exercised during the first trimester and their risk of miscarriage for mothers who exercised more than 7 hours a week. Miscarriage was even more common among the mothers who engaged in high-impact exercise programs.

Interestingly, researchers found no association between exercise and miscarriage after 18 weeks of pregnancy.

This study emphasizes the delicate period of time that we already know with regard to harmful substances in the first trimester.

If you are planning to exercise throughout your pregnancy, be sure you do so with caution in your first trimester and use only low impact exercises.

Brenda