Acta Scientific Women's Health (ASWH)(ISSN: 2582-3205)

Review Article Volume 4 Issue 9

A Narrative Review of the Individual Benefits of Maternal Exercise or PUFA Supplementation During Pregnancy: Are We Missing Something?

Cody J Strom1*, Samantha M McDonald2, Kimberly A Kew3, Joseph A Houmard4,5, David A Tulis6, Roman Pawlak7, George A Kelley8, Lisa Chasan-Taber9, Edward Newton10, Christy Isler10, James DeVente10 Breanna Wisseman4 and Linda E May4,10,11

1Department of Kinesiology and Sport, University of Southern Indiana, Evansville, USA
2School of Kinesiology and Recreation, Illinois State University, Normal, USA
3Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University (ECU), Greenville, USA
4College of Health and Human Performance, Department of Kinesiology, ECU, Greenville, USA
5East Carolina Diabetes and Obesity Institute, ECU, Greenville, USA
6Department of Physiology, Brody School of Medicine, ECU, Greenville, USA
7Department of Nutrition Science, ECU, Greenville, USA
8Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, West Virginia University, Morgantown, USA
9Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA
10College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Brody School of Medicine, ECU, Greenville, USA
11School of Dental Medicine, Department of Foundational Sciences and Research, ECU, Greenville, USA

*Corresponding Author: Cody J Strom, Department of Kinesiology and Sport, University of Southern Indiana, Evansville, USA.

Received: July 21, 2022; Published: August 11, 2022

Abstract

Evidence indicates that poor nutrition and physical inactivity during pregnancy are associated with increased risk of the child developing obesity, type 2 diabetes, and/or heart disease later in life. Current research demonstrates that maternal aerobic exercise and supplementation of Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) during pregnancy are associated with improved maternal lipid profiles and infant outcomes, such as a decreased risk of childhood obesity and improved infant cardiac autonomic function (i.e., lower heart rate (HR), increased heart rate variability (HRV)). Currently, the relationships between maternal DHA and EPA with maternal exercise on maternal lipids, infant body composition, and infant cardiac autonomic development are not known. The purpose of this literature review is to synthesize the current state of scientific evidence regarding the effects of prenatal aerobic exercise and maternal DHA and EPA concentrations on maternal lipids as well as infant body composition and cardiac autonomic health. In this review, we examine the individual influence of maternal exercise or DHA and EPA supplementation on maternal lipid profiles, infant body composition, and infant heart outcomes.

Keywords: Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (PUFA); Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA); Eicosapentaenoic Acid (EPA); Pregnancy; Infant

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Citation

Citation: Cody J Strom., et al. “A Narrative Review of the Individual Benefits of Maternal Exercise or PUFA Supplementation During Pregnancy: Are We Missing Something?". Acta Scientific Women's Health 4.9 (2022): 11-22.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2022 Cody J Strom., et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.




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