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MyHealthNewsDaily
Standing and working for long hours during a mother's pregnancy may slow her baby's growth, a new study from The Netherlands suggests.
In the study, women who stood for long periods at work during pregnancy had babies whose heads were, on average, 1 centimeter (or 3 percent) smaller in circumference than those of the average baby at birth.
In addition, women who worked more than 25 hours a week had babies who weighed five to seven ounces less on average than babies born to women who worked less than 25 hours a week.
An analysis of the babies' growth showed these differences were present from the third trimester on, the researchers said.
However, working long hours and engaging in physically demanding work during pregnancy did not put women at risk for preterm birth or for having babies with a low birth weight (less than 5.5 pounds).
In addition, earlier studies have found women who work have fewer pregnancy complications than women who are unemployed, the researchers said.
The findings mean that, for women who want to work during pregnancy, "by all means keep working," said Dr. Jill Rabin, an obstetrician and gynecologist at the North Shore Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New Hyde Park, N.Y.
However, pregnant women should make sure include a combination of sitting, standing and walking in their work day, Rabin said. Sitting for prolonged periods may increase the risk of blood clots, and standing for prolonged periods may compromise blood flow to the baby, Rabin said. "That’s why you have to mix it up," she said.
Working in pregnancy
Previous studies have suggested long work hours may increase the risk of birth defects, premature birth, and low birth weight, but have not focused on fetal growth.
In the new study, researchers at the Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands analyzed the growth rates of babies from more than 4,600 mothers-to-be. During pregnancy, the growth was measured by ultrasound.
Halfway through pregnancy, women were asked about the conditions of their work environments, and the physical demands of their jobs, including whether their jobs required lifting, prolonged periods of standing or walking, night shift work or long working hours.
About 38 percent of women said they spent a long time standing at work, in jobs such as
Long periods of standing was associated with slower rates of fetal growth, and with a smaller head size at birth. Working more than 25 hours per week also was also linked with fetal head circumference and growth, the researchers said.
There was no negative effect of working up to 36 weeks into pregnancy, the researchers found.
Future research
Because the study was conducted in The Netherlands, it's not clear whether the findings apply to other populations, said Dr. Jim Woods, chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Rochester Medical Center.
The study also did not assess how happy women were in their jobs, or whether they experienced stress at work or at home. A healthy mental state can improve the health of the immune system, and may lead to better pregnancy outcomes, Woods said.
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TODAY's Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb, along with Alison Bernstein from TheBump.com, test viewers' knowledge about pregnancy, including the most popular day to give birth and how many dirty diapers parents change per year.
Leave a Comment:
OMG: Why is a journalist unable to spell? "SHOW VS SLOW" ??? Come on Rachal!
Good grief, can't you even proofread the headline?
I wonder how long it will be before someone invents a pregnancy alarm that will alert pregnant women when it's time to stand up or sit down so their babies' heads don't turn out a centimeter too small.
I know! There is NO risk to the baby to actually do something.
You know where the risk is? The risk is sitting on your rear all day packing on pounds.
Given that until the past few decades, no woman sat for longer than a few minutes at a time...and given that many babies are actually being born "Large for gestational age" (the adult term used is OBESE) I think that this seems to show that keeping active (such as working, where you are more likely to be walking from time to time, etc etc) is actually a good thing-to an extent. The health of a baby at birth is important and can affect their LIFETIME...
Women have been standing and working while pregnent for 10,000 years. Now this is some sort of news story?
We should figure out why our infant mortality rate is so pitiful. I would like to see a study that compares lifestyles of European pregnancy outcomes vs the US.
I worked on my feet up until the week before I was induced which was my actual due date. I was on my feet all day. I would take breaks to sit but I can tell you this study is the complete opposite of what I encountered. I had a very healthy baby girl at 8 lbs 15 oz. She did not suffer from a smaller head than average. She, nor I, had any complications.
I would have loved to have been part of this study because I am proof that this is a line of b.s. It would be interesting to see how many of these women were smokers, drinkers, had medical problems prior to pregnancy, etc... Something that has simply been exlcuded from the study details.
I think that this is bogus. I stayed home during my 1st pregnancy and she weighed 6lbs 12 oz. I worked 7 days a week 8-10 hours a day 7 days a week during my 2nd pregnancy until I was 8 months pregnant then I worked 6 days a week 8-10 hours a day until my due date due to being put on bed rest due to pre eclampsia and she weighed 8lbs 9 oz (worked at a gas station). Then with my 3rd pregnancy I worked 7 hours a day 5 days a week standing all those hours making doughnuts and she was 7lbs 13oz. I worked up until the day I had her. My biggest baby was when I worked the most and I stood during my shifts except for maybe and hour a shift and my smallest baby was when I stayed at home and sat a lot so they don't make any sense to me.