Device-measured 24-hour Activity From Pregnancy Through 6 Months Postpartum

The 24-hour activity cycle, including sleep, sedentary behavior (SED), light-intensity physical activity (LPA) and moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) during pregnancy and postpartum is integral to maternal health. Despite its recognized importance, device-measured 24-hour activity across the perinatal period is not well described. PURPOSE: To describe device-measured 24-hour activity across pregnancy trimesters through 6 months postpartum. METHODS: Participants (n = 50) were enrolled in the ongoing multi-site Pregnancy 24/7 cohort and Postpartum 24/7 pilot cohort studies. They had 24-hour activity assessment for 7 days in each trimester of pregnancy and again at 3- and 6-months postpartum (5 total assessments) using the activPAL3 micro and Actiwatch Spectrum Plus. The 24-hour activity components were analyzed using descriptive statistics and repeated measures ANOVA. In addition, physical activity guideline adherence rates were computed with and without 10-minute bouts and analyzed using the chi-square test. RESULTS: To date, 24-hour activity data were obtained from 49 participants (mean age = 30 ± 4.5 years) across pregnancy and through 3 months postpartum and from 32 participants through 6-months postpartum. The 24-hour activity components demonstrated statistically significant differences over time (p < .05). Specifically, SED was higher and LPA lower during pregnancy as compared to postpartum. Median MVPA durations were stable in the 1st and 2nd trimesters, dipped in the 3rd trimester, and recovered during postpartum. Physical activity guideline adherence rates varied over time but were not statistically different. CONCLUSIONS: The 24-hour activity cycle changed during the life stage transition from pregnancy to postpartum, most notably by increasing LPA and decreasing SED. Future research should explore determinants of new mothers’ 24-hour activity and associations with perinatal health. - 24-houractivities 1st trimester(n = 48) 2nd trimester(n = 48) 3rd trimester(n = 47) Postpartum3 months(n = 48) Postpartum6 months(n = 32) Mean ± SD Mean ± SD Mean ± SD Mean ± SD Mean ± SD p Sleep (hours/day) 8.74 ± 0.98 8.49 ± 0.83 8.55 ± 0.80 8.62 ± 1.02 8.43 ± 1.031 .039 SED (hours/day) 10.37 ± 1.77 10.39 ± 1.54 10.46 ± 1.39 9.22 ± 1.511,2,3 8.91 ± 1.421,2,3 < .001 LPA (minutes/day) 264.30 ± 78.13 280.63 ± 90.10 277.52 ± 73.32 345.19 ± 74.821,2,3 370.51 ± 70.841,2,3 < .001 MVPA (minutes/day) Median[1st - 3rd Quartiles] Median[1st - 3rd Quartiles] Median[1st - 3rd Quartiles] Median[1st - 3rd Quartiles] Median[1st - 3rd Quartiles] All 25.6 [14.1 - 37.2] 27.1 [14.4 – 38.9] 19.0 [9.4 – 29.7]1 25.5 [12.6 – 37.2] 27.4 [18.1 – 33.2]3 .005 10-minutes bout 5.3 [0 - 13.4] 4.2 [0 – 12.9] 3.4 [0 – 8.6] 4.1 [0.9 – 12.8] 4.5 [0 – 8.9] .194 PA Guidelines n (%) n (%) n (%) n (%) n (%) p All 28 (58.3) 26 (54.2) 22 (47.0) 25 (52.1) 21 (65.6) .539 10-minutes bout 10 (20.8) 6 (12.5) 4 (9.0) 4 (8.3) 2 (6.3) .203 Note. 1: vs. 1st trimester (p < .05), 2: vs. 2nd trimester (p <. 05), 3: vs. 3rd trimester (p <. 05), 4: vs. postpartum-3 months (p <. 05).p-values from pairwise comparisons were adjusted by Tukey adjustment methods. p represents the p-value of repeated-measures ANOVA and Chi-square test. PA Guidelines: participants who met “MVPA ≥ 150 minutes/week” criterion. Supported by: The Pregnancy 24/7 study is funded by the National Institutes of Health (R01 HL153095)