Love for fitness begins in the womb

Women who remain physically active during pregnancy have exercise-friendly babies

NEW YORK: If to-be mothers remain physically active during pregnancy, they may have children who are exercise-friendly — a habit that persists in later adulthood, say researchers. In a study conducted over female mice who voluntarily exercised during pregnancy, the team found that the offspring were about 50% more physically active than those born to mothers who did not exercise.

“Our study in a mouse model is important because we can take all those effects out of the equation. We studied genetically identical mice and carefully controlled the amount of physical activity of the mothers before pregnancy,” said senior author Robert A Waterland from Baylor College of Medicine in the US.

To reach this conclusion, the team selected female mice that all enjoyed running and divided them into two groups.  One was allowed access to running wheels before and during pregnancy, and the other was not.



During early pregnancy, female mice with running wheels ran an average of 10km a night. They ran less as pregnancy progressed but, even by the beginning of the third trimester, they ran (or walked) about three kilometres each night.

Importantly, their increased activity persisted into later adulthood and even improved their ability to lose fat during a three-week voluntary exercise programme. “Although most people assume that an individual’s tendency to be physical active is determined by genetics, our results clearly show that the environment can play an important role during foetal development,” Waterland added.

If a similar effect can be confirmed in humans, it could represent an effective strategy to counteract the current worldwide epidemic of physical inactivity and obesity.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 3^rd, 2016.

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