Associations Between Maternal Physical Activity in Early and Late Pregnancy and Offspring Birth Size: Remote Federated Individual Level Meta‐analysis From Eight Cohort Studies

Authors

S. Pastorino, University of Cambridge
T. Bishop, University of Cambridge
S. Crozier, Southampton General Hospital
C. Granstrom, State Serum Institute, Copenhagan
K. Kordas, University at Buffalo
L. Kupers, University of Groningen
E. O'Brien, University College Dublin
K. Polanska, Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine, Lodz
K. Sauder, University of Colorado
M. Zafarmand, University of Amsterdam
R. Wilson, Newcastle University
C. Agyemang, University of Amsterdam
P. Burton, University of Newcastle
C. Cooper, University of Southampton
E. Corpeleijn, Groeningen University
D. Dabelea, University of Colorado
W. Hanke, Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine, Lodz
H. Inskip, University of Southampton
F. McAuliffe, University College Dublin
S. Olsen, State Serum Institute Copenhagen
T. Vrijkotte, Amsterdam University
S. Brage, University of Cambridge
A. Kennedy, Technological University DublinFollow
D. O'Gorman, University of Southampton
P. Scherer, University of Cambridge
K. Wijndaele, University of Cambridge
N. Wareham, University of Cambridge
G. Desoye, Medical University of Graz
K. K. Ong, University of Cambridge

Document Type

Article

Rights

Available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike 4.0 International Licence

Disciplines

1.6 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES

Publication Details

BJOG: and international journal of obstetrics and gynaecology

Abstract

Objective

Evidence on the impact of leisure time physical activity (LTPA) in pregnancy on birth size is inconsistent. We aimed to examine the association between LTPA during early and late pregnancy and newborn anthropometric outcomes.

Design

Individual level meta‐analysis, which reduces heterogeneity across studies.

Setting

A consortium of eight population‐based studies (seven European and one US) comprising 72 694 participants.

Methods

Generalised linear models with consistent inclusion of confounders (gestational age, sex, parity, maternal age, education, ethnicity, BMI, smoking, and alcohol intake) were used to test associations between self‐reported LTPA at either early (8–18 weeks gestation) or late pregnancy (30+ weeks) and the outcomes. Results were pooled using random effects meta‐analyses.

Main outcome measures

Birth weight, large‐for‐gestational age (LGA), macrosomia, small‐for‐gestational age (SGA), % body fat, and ponderal index at birth.

Results

Late, but not early, gestation maternal moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA), vigorous activity, and LTPA energy expenditure were modestly inversely associated with BW, LGA, macrosomia, and ponderal index, without heterogeneity (all: I2 = 0%). For each extra hour/week of MVPA, RR for LGA and macrosomia were 0.97 (95% CI: 0.96, 0.98) and 0.96 (95% CI: 0.94, 0.98), respectively. Associations were only modestly reduced after additional adjustments for maternal BMI and gestational diabetes. No measure of LTPA was associated with risk for SGA.

Conclusions

Physical activity in late, but not early, pregnancy is consistently associated with modestly lower risk of LGA and macrosomia, but not SGA.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-0528.15542.

Recommended Citation

Pastorino, S., Bishop, T., Crozier, S. et al (2019). Associations between maternal physical activity in early and late pregnancy and offspring birth size: remote federated individual level meta‐analysis from eight cohort studies. BJOG, 126(4), pp.459-470. doi:10.1111/1471-0528.15542.