The Influence of Physical Activity on the Quality of Life During Pregnancy

Abstract

Pregnancy sets new and higher demands for woman’s body. There are changes in almost all functions of organs and systems, and metabolism during pregnancy. These changes are physiological and the body adapts to the new conditions. Many organs and systems start functioning pathologically, and pregnant body starts to react abnormally to various external and internal stimuli. Physical activity (any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that requires energy expenditure higher than resting; physical activity is indicated
by the average energy expenditure a day, a week, and is defined by metabolic equivalent (MET) [1]), fully affects and strengthens woman’s body, increases the physiological capacities, activates the work of all systems, and ensures the normal course of pregnancy by improving maternal cardiovascular condition, activating placental blood flow, oxygen transport, improving fetal metabolism. Physical activity has been proved to have positive effect on different systems of human body. The death-rate in pregnant women resulting from hypertension is the second cause after embolism. Preeclampsia is one of the hypertension-related failures which affects 3 to 5% of the pregnant women [2]. The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare the effect of physical activity on the quality of life (quality of sleep, headache, right side pain, physical and psychological fatigue), blood pressure, and body mass index in physically active and inactive women during 20–35 weeks of pregnancy. It was found that the quality of sleep during 20–25–30–35 weeks of pregnancy was significantly higher and headache and right side pain, as well as, blood pressure, and body mass index were significantly lower in physically active women compared to inactive women. Conclusion. Physical activity during pregnancy had a positive effect on antenatal arterial blood pressure, body mass index and the quality of life during 20–35 weeks of pregnancy.

Keywords: pregnancy, physical activity, quality of life, blood pressure, body mass index.