Women who are pregnant often have trouble getting up and moving for the suggested amount of prenatal exercise. With the advent and popularity of the Wii, could pregnant women now have a fun way to move and reduce the effect of gestational diabetes at the same time?
There are many reasons why pregnant women just don’t move as much as they should. Being busy at work and living in a colder climate are two of the more popular. Exercise is important to the health of mo and the fetus, especially when women are diagnosed with gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes is diagnosed in 2 to 9% of pregnancies.
Researchers at the St. Michael’s Hospital want to find the best way of reducing the effects of gestational diabetes on the pregnant woman and fetus. Pregnant patients who test positive for gestational diabetes could be offered a Nintendo Wii gaming system, Wii Fit board, Wii Sport game and Wii Fit Plus. The idea is to get women moving more to control blood glucose levels.
Women who test positive for gestational diabetes are at higher risk of having diabetes even after the pregnancy is over. Teaching women about alternative exercises, even those utilizing the Wii gaming system could have a significant impact on future cases of diabetes. Other risk factors associated with uncontrolled gestational diabetes include high birth weight infants, pre-eclampsia and death of mother or fetus due to diabetes complications during pregnancy.
Source: Leslie Shepherd. St. Michael’s Hospital. 15 October 2010.