Physical Activity and its Associated Factors among Pregnant Sudanese Women in Eastern Sudan

Abstract

Background: Moderate physical activity (PA) during pregnancy (> 150 min/week) is beneficial to mothers and their growing fetuses. There are no published data on PA during pregnancy in Sudan. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted to assess the level of PA among pregnant Sudanese women and to determine its associated factors. Sociodemographic and obstetric variables were gathered through a questionnaire, and PA was assessed by the Pregnancy Physical Activity Questionnaire (PPAQ). The scores were compiled, the participants were classified according to the intensity and type of PA, and logistic regression analysis was performed. Results: Five hundred women with a median (interquartile range) age of 27.0 (9.0) years were enrolled. The majority (88.4%) were housewives, more than half (53.6%) were overweight, and just over a quarter (25.8%) were obese. The sedentary activity was reported by 367 women (73.4%). The most energy (29.54 ± 9.62 metabolic equivalent task h/week; 83.75%) was spent during household and caregiving activities. While there was no association with age, parity, education, gestational age, and PA, overweight (adjusted odds ratios (AOR) = 2.38, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.27-4.45) and obesity (AOR = 3.07, 95% CI = 1.56-6.02) were associated with PA. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that the majority of Sudanese pregnant women had a sedentary lifestyle. Most of the energy was spent during household and caregiving activities. Overweight and obese pregnant women were more likely to be physically active. Health education about the importance of prenatal PA is needed in Sudan.