“ Studies using WHOOP in non-pregnant users have shown heart rate variability to be a marker of fitness ,” Rowan said . “ Therefore , this could indicate that fitness gains occur during pregnancy . Anecdotally , this has been suggested in the past . As this data is further analyzed , we may see that physiologic markers show this to be true .”
The data also indicates that the participants ’ resting heart rates worsened as their due dates neared . After the women gave birth , their resting heart rates quickly improved . In fact , the participants ’ resting heart rates were better after they gave birth than before they got pregnant . Their resting heart rates continued to improve six weeks after delivery .
In 2019 , one in 10 babies born in the United State was pre-term , reports the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ). That rate has risen every year since 2015 . Being born early can have severe consequences . Pre-term infants are more likely to experience feeding difficulties , developmental delays , and problems with hearing , vision , and breathing .
As common as pre-term deliveries are in the United States , C-sections are even more prevalent . According to the CDC , 31.9 % of all deliveries were by C-section in 2018 . That ’ s one of the highest C-section rates in all developed countries .
If a woman has a C-section , not only is her post-delivery recovery longer , but her risk of infection , blood clots , postpartum hemorrhage , and other complications are higher . She ’ s also more likely to die .
The United States has one of the highest maternal mortality rates among developed countries : 17.3 deaths per 100,000 live births , according to the CDC .
Technologies like WHOOP have the potential to ameliorate these risk factors .
“ This groundbreaking study is the first step in highlighting a massive gap in the literature around exercise prescription for pregnant woman ,” Holmes said . “ WHOOP data was able to show that pregnancy dramatically affects things like resting heart rate , heart rate variability , and ability to recover . Not only do WHOOP insights help pregnant women understand their health throughout each trimester , they also reinforce the notion that a healthy pregnancy , when it comes to exercise , is not one size fits all .”
Image : A new study led by Shon Rowan — a researcher with the WVU School of Medicine — explored how a wearable device called WHOOP could be used to monitor pregnant women ’ s resting heart rate and heart rate variability . The data that he and his team collected from the devices shed light on the fitness changes that can take place during and after pregnancy . Photo by Brian Persinger .
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West Virginia Medical Journal • March 2021 • 17