Prenatal Exercise and Cardiovascular Health (PEACH) study: impact of meal timing and pre-exercise blood glucose values on glycemic responses to acute exercise in pregnancy

Abstract

We retrospectively analyzed data from 28 participants engaging in moderate-intensity aerobic exercise (265 sessions; 25–40 min) between 18–34 weeks gestation (NCT 02948439). The mean change in blood glucose (BG) from pre- to post-acute exercise session was −1.0 ± 1.2 mmol/L. Pre-exercise BG significantly predicted the change in BG ( p < 0.001), even when controlling for meal timing, exercise duration, and gestational age. Hypoglycemia only occurred in 3% of sessions. Therefore, in healthy pregnancy the change in BG during exercise is small and primarily related to pre-exercise BG values.