Padrão de atividade física entre gestantes atendidas pela estratégia saúde da família de Campina Grande - PB

Behavior of pregnant women regarding physical activity in gestational diabetes mellitus: secondary analysis of a descriptive cross-sectional study

Objective: The purposeof this study was to compare the physical activity of pregnant women with and without gestational diabetes mellitus regarding the physical activity domains and to verify possible associations between socio-demographic characteristics, nutritional status, and lifestyle with gestational diabetes.Design /Methods: Consists in a study including 798 adult pregnant women attended by the Unique Health System in Ribeirão Preto, Brazil from 2011 to 2012. The variables studied were recorded using questionnaires, as well as frequency (weekly), duration (minutes) and the metabolic equivalent. The frequency of the categorical variables and the mean and standard deviation (SD) of the continuous variables were calculated and the Mann Whitney test, Student's t test and the X²test calculated the differences of the study variables according to the presence of diabetes. The adopted significance level was α = 5%.Results:Indicate that pregnant women with diabetes have lower average energy expenditure in the physical activity domains. However, we found a significant difference between groups regarding the average energy expenditure related to the occupational domain. Considering the Physical Activity (PA) pattern, we found that the sedentary percentage was higher in both groups. However, there were no relevant differences between them. The variables: previously diabetes, nutritional status, pre-gestational and current body mass index were associated with the development of diabetes.Conclusion: Further studies are needed to explore physical activities in different domains in pregnancy and its relationship with gestational diabetes, especially in the occupational domain.

Prevalence of physical activity and associated factors among pregnant women: a cross-sectional population-based study in southern Brazil

Abstract Objectives: to describe the prevalence of sufficient leisure-time physical activity (LPA) in the trimesters of pregnancy and to test its association with sociodemographic and contextual characteristics. Methods: cross-sectional study that in 2019 analyzed data from 3580 pregnant women residing in Santa Catarina, Brazil. LPA was categorized as “active” (150 minutes or more of LPA/week) and “inactive” (less than 150 minutes). Results: the prevalence for the recommended level of LPA was 15.3% (CI95%= 14.1-16.4) before pregnancy, gradually declining to 7.8% (CI95%= 7.3-8.7), 7.3% (CI95%= 6.58.2), and 5.8% (CI95%= 5.1-6.7) in the following trimesters of pregnancy. Higher level of education was associated with the four outcomes, increasing the chance of being active by 79% in the third trimester of pregnancy. In the second trimester, living in a neighborhood that stimulates physical activity increased the chance of being active by 39%. In the third trimester, having received guidance from a health professional was associated with an increase of 60% in the chance of practicing LPA. Conclusion: the prevalence of recommended LPA is low among pregnant women and living in a neighborhood favorable to outdoor practices, greater education level and receiving guidance from health professionals increased the chance of pregnant women to be active.

Physical Activity Patterns and Factors Related to Exercise during Pregnancy: A Cross Sectional Study

Objective

To assess the physical activity levels of pregnant women and to examine the characteristics associated with the practice of exercise and the activities of daily living during pregnancy.

Methods

For this cross-sectional study, 1,279 women were recruited within 72 hours postpartum. They were interviewed about their socio-demographic data and obstetric history and were administered self-report questionnaires about exercise and daily physical activities during pregnancy. Data on the current pregnancy, labor, delivery, and newborn outcomes were collected from participants’ medical records. To analyze factors related to the practice of exercise, we used the student t-test, X², and odds ratio (OR), with a corresponding 95% confident interval (CI), followed by a multiple logistic regression. The significance level was 5%.

Results

Compared to the pre-pregnancy period, the prevalence of physical activity among participants was lower throughout pregnancy (20.1%) (p = 0.01). Half of the women interrupted practicing physical exercise due to pregnancy. The lowest prevalence of exercise was observed in the first (13.6%) and third trimesters (13.4%). Less than half of women received exercise guidance during prenatal care meetings (47.4%). Walking was the most commonly reported exercise, followed by water aerobics. Factors positively associated with exercise practice were higher educational level (OR= 1.82; CI 95% 1.28–2.60), primiparity (OR=1.49; CI 95% 1.07–2.07), exercising before pregnancy (OR= 6.45; CI 95% 4.64–8.96), and exercise guidance during prenatal care (OR=2.54; CI 95% 1.80–3.57). Mildly intense exercise and domestic activities were most frequently reported among pregnant women. There were no differences in maternal and perinatal outcomes between active and sedentary pregnant women.

Conclusion

The findings indicate that promoting physical activity remains a priority in public health policy, and women of childbearing age, especially those planning a pregnancy, should be encouraged to adopt an exercise routine or maintain an active lifestyle during pregnancy in order to avoid sedentary- and obesity-associated risks.

Processo de gestar e parir entre as mulheres Kaingang

Este estudo teve por objetivo identificar o processo de gestação e nascimento entre as mulheres Kaingang. Pesquisa qualitativa de abordagem etnográfica, realizada com 30 mulheres Kaingang, na Terra Indígena de Faxinal de Catanduvas-PR. A coleta de dados ocorreu por meio de observação participante, entrevistas e grupo focal, no período de janeiro a abril de 2011 e foram analisados à luz da Teoria Transcultural do Cuidado. A população estudada tinha entre 14 e 100 anos. A concepção de parto tem mudado com o passar das gerações, sendo que as mais velhas acreditam ser melhor parir acocorada em casa, já as mulheres mais novas demonstram insegurança de ter os filhos fora do hospital. Foi identificada insatisfação na assistência durante o parto. É necessária a adequação das práticas de forma a preservar a cultura da etnia sem a exposição de mulheres e recém-nascidos ao risco de complicações ou mortalidade.

Knowledge, attitude and practice of women in Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil with respect to physical exercise in pregnancy: a descriptive study

Background

Pregnancy is a good time to develop healthy lifestyle habits including regular exercise and good nutrition. Programs of physical exercise for pregnant women have been recommended; however, there are few references on this subject in the literature. The objective of this study was to evaluate the knowledge, attitude and practice of pregnant women with respect to appropriate physical exercise during pregnancy, and also to investigate why some women do not exercise during pregnancy.

Methods

A descriptive study was conducted in which 161 women of 18 to 45 years of age were interviewed in the third trimester of pregnancy. These women were receiving prenatal care at National Health Service (SUS) primary healthcare units and had no pathologies for which physical exercise would constitute a risk. The women were selected at an ultrasonography clinic accredited to the SUS in Campinas, São Paulo. A previously elaborated knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) questionnaire was used to collect data, which were then stored in an Epinfo database. Statistical analysis was conducted using Pearson's chi-square test and Fisher's exact test to evaluate the association between the study variables (p < 0.05).

Results

Almost two-thirds (65.6%) of the women were sufficiently informed about the practice of physical exercise during pregnancy and the vast majority (93.8%) was in favor of it. Nevertheless, only just over 20% of the women in this sample exercised adequately. Significant associations were found between an adequate knowledge of physical exercise during pregnancy and education level (p = 0.0014) and between the adequate practice of physical exercise during pregnancy and having had fewer pregnancies (p = 0.0001). Lack of time and feeling tired and uncomfortable were the principal reasons given by the women for not exercising.

Conclusion

These results suggest that women's knowledge concerning the practice of physical exercise during pregnancy is reasonable and their attitude is favorable; however, relatively few actually exercise during pregnancy.