Do not smoke, do not drink alcohol, do not eat raw fish, do not use a hammam, do not expose yourself to the sun … For pregnant women, there are many prohibitions. And according to a new study from the University of Auckland (New Zealand), expectant mothers should also avoid … sleeping on their backs.
This work – published in the Journal of Physiology – was conducted on 30 women in their last month of pregnancy (between 34 and 38 weeks of pregnancy). Using an infrared camera, the New Zealand researchers were able to observe the sleep of the participants and, using ECG monitoring, they also recorded the heartbeats of expectant mothers and fetuses.
Verdict? When the expectant mother slept on her back, the fetus was less active: fetal activity decreased significantly, which can cause a developmental abnormality or even a miscarriage. On the other hand, when the mother-to-be slept on her side (on the left or on the right), fetal activity was normal.
The ideal: sleep on the left side
“This is a parameter that is not necessarily to be taken into account when the fetus is in good health, nuance Peter R. Stone, main author of this work. On the other hand, if the fetus exhibits abnormal growth and / or cardiac activity, it may be beneficial to adopt a different position during sleep time and to avoid sleeping on your back. “
In November 2016, a New Zealand study had already studied the question: sleeping on your back during the third trimester of pregnancy would reduce the oxygen consumption of the fetus and increase the risk of stillbirth. The researchers then recommended that expectant mothers to sleep on the left side, much less risky … Easier said than done!
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