Pregnant women who regularly take aquarobics classes are far less likely to need pain relief during labour, new research suggests.
A study found that only 27% of women who did aquarobics three times a week during pregnancy requested pain relief compared with 65% of women who did not do the exercises. Researchers also found that water aerobics was a safe form of exercise for mother and baby.
Experts from the University of Campinas in Sao Paulo, Brazil, divided 71 women into two groups for the study, published in the journal Reproductive Health. All the women were less than 20 weeks pregnant at the start of the study and were healthy.
The first group of 34 women undertook 50 minutes of aquarobics three times a week in an indoor pool during their pregnancy. Meanwhile, the second group, of 37 women, did not do any regular physical exercise during their pregnancy.
All the women were closely followed up until the time of delivery and were regularly tested to measure their oxygen levels, heart rate, physical fitness and skin temperature. Their babies were also monitored after birth to check if they were healthy.
The authors noted there was no difference between the groups in terms of how long their labour lasted or whether they required a Caesarean section.
Lead researcher Rosa Pereira said: "We found no statistically significant differences in the duration of labour or the type of delivery between the two groups.
"However, only 27% of women in the aquarobics group requested analgesia, compared to 65% in the control group. This represents a 58% reduction in requests."
There has been debate about whether pregnant women should exercise, with concerns raised about the fact it may interfere with a growing baby's needs. But Ms Pereira and colleagues found no adverse effects from water aerobics among women in the study.
She said: "We've shown that the regular practice of moderate water aerobics during pregnancy is not detrimental to the health of the mother or the child. In fact, the reduction in analgesia requests suggests that it can get women into better psycho-physical condition."