Method

Literature was found from databases

on Ebscohost including: Medline,
CINAHL, and health source: nursing
edition
Keywords used: pregnancy,
maternal/fetal well being, exercise,
and health benefits
Majority of articles found were from
the last five years
Synthesis of Findings
This PICO question is significant to nursing practice because nurses play a
vital role in education for pregnant women in relation to their overall well
being and the benefits of exercise (Bungam, Peaslee, Jackson, & Perez, 2000)
Levels of evidence included: 3 level I-
all meta analyses, 1 level II- a RCT, 3
level III- all perspective longitudinal
cohort studies, 1 level IV- a non
experimental trial and 1 level VI- a
qualitative systemic review
The purpose of this research was to
examine the best available evidence on
aerobic exercise and maternal weight
gain during pregnancy in relation to:
gestational weight gain, hyperglycemia,
postpartum depression, and cesarean
delivery rates (Lamina et al., 2013;
Streuling et al., 2011; Deierlein et al.,
2012; Downs et al., 2008; Barakat et
al., 2012)
Review of Literature
Research indicates if women have no health concerns or contraindications they should
exercise throughout the course of their pregnancy. Benefits include, but are not limited to:
reduced rates of pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes, cesarean deliveries, low back pain,
anxiety, leg cramps, and control of excessive weight gain (Lamina and Agbanusi, 2013)
Those who expend the most calories had a lower chance of developing gestational
diabetes, compared to those with low energy expenditure (Putnam, 2013)
Maternal weight gain was found to be statistically lower in women who exercised
compared to the control group; however, minimal effects were found on the cesarean
delivery rates between the experimental and control group (Baraket, Pelaez, Lopez,
Montejo, & Coteron, 2012)
Women who participated in moderate to vigorous physical activity with a body mass index
below 25 kg/m2 have a lower risk of hyperglycemia (Deierlein, Siega-riz, & Evenson, 2012)
Body image satisfaction and depressive symptoms both before and during pregnancy
played a vital role in determining whether or not a mother would develop depression later
in pregnancy or even postpartum. Exercise behavior has been shown to improve body
image satisfaction and decrease depressive symptoms which in turn could possibly help
prevent mothers from later developing postpartum depression (Downs, Dinallo, & Kirner,
2008)

Recommendations
and Discussion
Pregnant women should participate
in aerobic exercise during the course
of their pregnancy, unless
contraindicated
Due to the results from research,
recommendations would be graded
as a C according to The United
States Preventive Services Task Force
(2012)
Grade C consists of implementing
exercise during pregnancy to specific
patients because research showed
that the benefit of exercise on
women during pregnancy was small
and circumstantial
Overall, the benefits found from
research have shown to greatly
outweigh risks, which is why it is
recommended for women to be
active during the course of their
pregnancy
Further research needs to be done
with more control of confounding
variables to determine direct effects
of exercise on pregnant women