(Press-News.org) Contact information: William Raillant-Clark
w.raillant-clark@umontreal.ca
514-566-3813
University of Montreal
Exercise during pregnancy gives newborn brain development a head start
As little as 20 minutes 3 times per week is enough to enhance brain activity
This news release is available in French.
MONTREAL and SAN DIEGO, NOVEMBER 10, 2013 – As little as 20 minutes of moderate exercise three times per week during pregnancy enhances the newborn child's brain development, according to researchers at the University of Montreal and its affiliated CHU Sainte-Justine children's hospital. This head-start could have an impact on the child's entire life. "Our research indicates that exercise during pregnancy enhances the newborn child's brain development," explained Professor Dave Ellemberg, who led the study. "While animal studies have shown similar results, this is the first randomized controlled trial in humans to objectively measure the impact of exercise during pregnancy directly on the newborn's brain. We hope these results will guide public health interventions and research on brain plasticity. Most of all, we are optimistic that this will encourage women to change their health habits, given that the simple act of exercising during pregnancy could make a difference for their child's future." Ellemberg and his colleagues Professor Daniel Curnier and PhD candidate Élise Labonté-LeMoyne presented their findings today at the Neuroscience 2013 congress in San Diego.
Not so long ago, obstetricians would tell women to take it easy and rest during their pregnancy. Recently, the tides have turned and it is now commonly accepted that inactivity is actually a health concern. "While being sedentary increases the risks of suffering complications during pregnancy, being active can ease post-partum recovery, make pregnancy more comfortable and reduce the risk of obesity in the children," Curier explained. "Given that exercise has been demonstrated to be beneficial for the adult's brain, we hypothesized that it could also be beneficial for the unborn child through the mother's actions."
To verify this, starting at the beginning of their second trimester, women were randomly assigned to an exercise group or a sedentary group. Women in the exercise group had to perform at least 20 minutes of cardiovascular exercise three times per week at a moderate intensity, which should lead to at least a slight shortness of breath. Women in the sedentary group did not exercise. The brain activity of the newborns was assessed between the ages of 8 to 12 days, by means of electroencephalography, which enables the recording of the electrical activity of the brain. "We used 124 soft electrodes placed on the infant's head and waited for the child to fall asleep on his or her mother's lap. We then measured auditory memory by means of the brain's unconscious response to repeated and novel sounds," Labonté-LeMoyne said. "Our results show that the babies born from the mothers who were physically active have a more mature cerebral activation, suggesting that their brains developed more rapidly."
VIDEO:
As little as 20 minutes of moderate exercise three times per week during pregnancy enhances the newborn child's brain development, according to researchers at the University of Montreal and its...
Click here for more information.
The researchers are now in the process of evaluating the children's cognitive, motor and language development at age 1 to verify if these differences are maintained.
INFORMATION:
Video and Images
A wide variety of broadcast quality video and print resolution photos are available at no cost to the media. Further images are available. Image consent has been obtained and copies of written release are available on request. Images feature study participants. Credit: Universite de Montreal.
Exercise during pregnancy gives newborn brain development a head start
As little as 20 minutes 3 times per week is enough to enhance brain activity
2013-11-11
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Single-cell genome sequencing gets better
2013-11-11
Single-cell genome sequencing gets better
Most complete genome sequences from single E. coli cells and individual neurons from the human brain generated by new sequencing approach from UC San Diego bioengineers and colleagues
Researchers led by bioengineers ...
Racial difference in blood clotting warrants a closer look at heart attack medications
2013-11-11
Racial difference in blood clotting warrants a closer look at heart attack medications
(PHILADELPHIA) Thomas Jefferson University researchers have discovered that the formation of blood clots follows a different molecular route in African Americans ...
Research by Saint Louis University scientists offers way to disrupt fibrosis
2013-11-11
Research by Saint Louis University scientists offers way to disrupt fibrosis
Nature Medicine paper pinpoints where, how to intervene
ST. LOUIS – A team of scientists that includes Saint Louis University researchers has identified a new way to intervene in the molecular ...
The contribution of coding variants to psoriasis much smaller than thought
2013-11-11
The contribution of coding variants to psoriasis much smaller than thought
The latest study was published online in Nature Genetics
November 10, 2013, Shenzhen, China - Coding variants in immune disease-related genes play only a small part in the overall genetic risk for psoriasis, according ...
Hope for transplant patients as study finds key to organ scarring
2013-11-11
Hope for transplant patients as study finds key to organ scarring
Uni of Edinburgh news release
Patients with damaged organs could be helped by new treatments after scientists have discovered how tissues scar.
Researchers say that the finding could pave ...
Cause of genetic disorder found in 'dark matter' of DNA
2013-11-11
Cause of genetic disorder found in 'dark matter' of DNA
For the first time, scientists have used new technology which analyses the whole genome to find the cause of a genetic disease in what was previously referred to as 'junk DNA'
For the first time, scientists ...
All aboard the nanotrain network
2013-11-11
All aboard the nanotrain network
VIDEO:
Nanotrain transport system created by Oxford University scientists in action: The time-lapse ...
'Saving our fish' needs more than a ban on discarding
2013-11-11
'Saving our fish' needs more than a ban on discarding
Banning the practice of throwing unmarketable or over-quota fish back into the sea is just one of the measures needed to deliver sustainable fisheries according to new research from the University of East Anglia ...
Fast-mutating DNA sequences shape early development; guided evolution of uniquely human traits
2013-11-11
Fast-mutating DNA sequences shape early development; guided evolution of uniquely human traits
Gladstone-led study reveals new insight into origins of our species
SAN FRANCISCO, CA—November 11, 2013—What does it mean to be human? According to scientists ...
Un-junking junk DNA
2013-11-11
Un-junking junk DNA
A study led by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine shines a new light on molecular tools our cells use to govern regulated gene expression. The study was published on line in advance of print November ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
CeSPIACE: A broad-spectrum peptide inhibitor against variable SARS-CoV-2 spikes
Understanding the origin of magnetic moment enhancement in novel alloys
BU researchers develop computational tools to safeguard privacy without degrading voice-based cognitive markers
Breakthrough in rapid polymer nanostructure production
Artificial photosynthesis: Researchers mimic plants
Social disadvantage can accelerate ageing and increase disease risk
Breaking free from dependence on rare resources! A domestic high-performance permanent magnet emerges!
Symptoms of long-COVID can last up to two years after infection with COVID-19
Violence is forcing women in Northern Ireland into homelessness, finds new report
Latin American intensivists denounce economic and cultural inequities in the global scientific publishing system
Older adults might be more resistant to bird flu infections than children, Penn research finds
Dramatic increase in research funding needed to counter productivity slowdown in farming
How chemistry and force etch mysterious spiral patterns on solid surfaces
Unraveling the mysteries of polycystic kidney disease
Mother’s high-fat diet can cause liver stress in fetus, study shows
Weighing in on a Mars water debate
Researchers ‘seq’ and find a way to make pig retinal cells to advance eye treatments
Re-purposed FDA-approved drug could help treat high-grade glioma
Understanding gamma rays in our universe through StarBurst
Study highlights noninvasive hearing aid
NASA taps UTA to shape future of autonomous aviation
Mutations disrupt touch-based learning, study finds
Misha lived in zoos, but the elephant’s tooth enamel helps reconstruct wildlife migrations
Eat better, breathe easier? Research points to link between diet, lung cancer
Mesozoic mammals had uniform dark fur
Wartime destruction of Kakhovka Dam in Ukraine has long-term environmental consequences
NIH’s flat 15% funding policy is misguided and damaging
AI reveals new insights into the flow of Antarctic ice
Scientists solve decades-long Parkinson’s mystery
Spinning, twisted light could power next-generation electronics
[Press-News.org] Exercise during pregnancy gives newborn brain development a head startAs little as 20 minutes 3 times per week is enough to enhance brain activity