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By Vivian Richardson, Ivanhoe Health Correspondent
NEW ORLEANS (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Larger-than-normal babies are more likely to become larger-than-normal children later in life. With childhood obesity as one of the world's largest emerging health concerns, researchers are looking for ways to reduce a child's risk of obesity, which increases the probability of later health problems like diabetes and heart disease.
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"It is thought that the in-utero environment has implications later in life," said Sarah Hopkins, a researcher at the University of Auckland in New Zealand. She and her colleagues set out to find out if exercise during pregnancy could lower the birth weights of infants.
Researchers compared 48 pregnant women, split in two groups, with similar statistics -- between age 26 and 34, and a healthy BMI of about 26. One group participated in regular stationary bike exercise. The second group did not exercise.
Although the women in the exercise group exercised less in the last few weeks of their pregnancies, researchers report the babies born to women in the exercise group were lighter at birth and had less body fat. Also, Cesarean section births were lower in the exercise group.
"We speculate that the reduction in neonatal fat mass may lead to a reduction in later life obesity," said Hopkins. She and her colleagues plan more research to uncover what happens in the womb when women exercise and why this leads to leaner babies.
This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, which offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, click on: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.
SOURCE: Vivian Richardson at the American College of Sports Medicine 54th Annual Meeting in New Orleans, May 30-June 2, 2007
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