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Diet, Nutrition, and Fetal Programming pp 43–53Cite as

Maternal Fitness and Infant Birth Weight

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Abstract

Numerous studies have evaluated the effects of maternal physical activity on infant birth weight, an important pregnancy outcome reflecting the quality of the prenatal environment and associated with future cardiometabolic and obesity risk. Although maternal physical activity interventions slightly reduce infant birth weight, the optimal physical activity dose to improve the child long term health and its effect on infant’s body composition remain unknown. Recent evidence have also confirmed previous results suggesting that various physical activity types, volumes, and intensities have different impacts on fetal growth. Indeed, while moderate levels of physical activity could increase infant birth weight, high levels of physical activity during pregnancy appear to decrease birth weight and neonatal adiposity in low-risk pregnant women. Although most studies suggest no increase in the risk of small birth weight with maternal exercise, more studies are needed to improve our understanding of the long term consequences of these fetal adaptations on child growth and health, especially in women presenting a high-risk pregnancy.

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Abbreviations

BMC:

Bone mineral content

BMD:

Bone mineral density

BMI:

Body mass index

CI:

Confidence interval

DXA:

Dual energy x-ray absorptiometry

Hb:

Hemoglobin

HDL:

High density lipoprotein

OR:

Odds ratio

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatrics, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Québec-Université Laval, Québec City, PQ, Canada

    Michèle Bisson PhD & Isabelle Marc MD, PhD

Authors
  1. Michèle Bisson PhD
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  2. Isabelle Marc MD, PhD
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Correspondence to Isabelle Marc MD, PhD .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nutrition, King's College, London, United Kingdom

    Rajkumar Rajendram

  2. Department of Nutrition, King's College, London, United Kingdom

    Victor R. Preedy

  3. Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Westminster, London, United Kingdom

    Vinood B. Patel

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Bisson, M., Marc, I. (2017). Maternal Fitness and Infant Birth Weight. In: Rajendram, R., Preedy, V., Patel, V. (eds) Diet, Nutrition, and Fetal Programming. Nutrition and Health. Humana Press, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60289-9_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60289-9_4

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