{"id":11947,"date":"2026-08-31T06:00:31","date_gmt":"2026-08-31T05:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/bjsm\/?p=11947"},"modified":"2026-08-31T09:47:36","modified_gmt":"2026-08-31T08:47:36","slug":"sit-less-and-move-more-to-reduce-risk-of-hypertensive-disorders-of-pregnancy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/bjsm\/2026\/08\/31\/sit-less-and-move-more-to-reduce-risk-of-hypertensive-disorders-of-pregnancy\/","title":{"rendered":"Sit less and move more to reduce risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>Why is this study important?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Some people develop dangerously high blood pressure during pregnancy, a group of conditions known as hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. When left unmanaged, these conditions can lead to serious complications for both mother and baby and increase lifetime risk of cardiovascular disease. Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy affect roughly one in seven pregnancies,<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> making them a major public health challenge (1).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity during pregnancy reduces the risk of developing hypertensive disorders of pregnancy,<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> yet in the United States fewer than 25% of pregnant people meet the minimum recommendation of 150 minutes per week (2, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">3).<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Levels are similarly low in other regions of the world (4).<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Given pregnancy-specific barriers to moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, such as fatigue and nausea, it is critical to identify alternative behaviours that may be more feasible intervention targets to improve pregnancy health. Prior to this study, little was known about the health effects of lower-intensity behaviours including sitting, light activity, and sleep on cardiovascular health in pregnancy (5).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>How did the study go about this?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">To address this gap, the Pregnancy 24\/7 cohort study<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> recruited 500 participants across three US sites (Iowa, Pittsburgh, and West Virginia) between 2021 and 2024 (6).. In each trimester, participants wore<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400\">two devices (activPAL and Actiwatch Spectrum Plus) for seven full days to objectively measure waking movement and time in bed, rather than relying on recall or self-report. The activPAL is a small device worn on the thigh, under clothing, that detects body position and movement to record how much time is spent sitting, standing, and walking. The Actiwatch is worn on the wrist like a watch and estimates sleep and wake patterns from wrist movement and light exposure. Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy were extracted from medical records and confirmed by physicians. For the analysis, we used a technique that combines all 24-hour movement behaviours to identify the optimal daily pattern, paired with a framework known as the &#8220;Goldilocks Day&#8221; (not too much, not too little) to find a unified recommendation associated with the lowest risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>What did the study find?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Among the 470 participants with complete data, 18% developed a hypertensive disorder during pregnancy. The most important finding was that the relative time spent in sedentary behaviour or light-intensity physical activity was the strongest and most consistent predictor of developing a hypertensive disorder of pregnancy across all three trimesters.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">A realistic and achievable &#8220;Goldilocks Day&#8221; profile for most pregnant people involved approximately 8 hours per day of sedentary behaviour, 7 hours per day of light-intensity physical activity, 22 minutes per day of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, and 9 hours per day of sleep. This composition was associated with a 29% reduction in the risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy compared with a typical day (around 10 hours sedentary and 5 hours of light activity) and a 68% reduction compared with the worst-case scenario (around 14 hours sedentary and 1.5 hours of light activity).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">When we held moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and sleep constant at their typical levels and examined only the trade-off between sedentary behaviour and light activity, risk followed a clear exponential pattern. For example, each additional hour of sedentary behaviour per day was associated with a 30% multiplicative increase in the risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, with risk rising steeply beyond 10 hours per day. This finding suggests that any reduction in sedentary time paired with an increase in light activity may represent a potentially beneficial strategy for cardiovascular health during pregnancy.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>What are the key take-home points?<\/b><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Sitting less and moving more matters for blood pressure health during pregnancy.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">In addition to meeting moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and sleep guidelines, aim for less than 8 hours of sitting per day and replace sitting time with light activity (standing and slow walking).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Light activity is accessible to nearly everyone, making it a practical target for prenatal counselling at any stage of pregnancy.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Future research should test whether interventions specifically designed to replace sitting with light movement can reduce the incidence of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and improve long-term maternal cardiovascular health. These findings also highlight the importance of behaviours beyond structured exercise. For pregnant people who cannot meet moderate-to-vigorous physical activity guidelines, a sit less and move more pattern offers an additional and realistic target that clinicians can discuss during prenatal care.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-11948\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/bjsm\/files\/2026\/08\/Sitting-Less-and-Moving-More-During-Pregnancy-240x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"478\" height=\"598\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/bjsm\/files\/2026\/08\/Sitting-Less-and-Moving-More-During-Pregnancy-240x300.png 240w, https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/bjsm\/files\/2026\/08\/Sitting-Less-and-Moving-More-During-Pregnancy-768x960.png 768w, https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/bjsm\/files\/2026\/08\/Sitting-Less-and-Moving-More-During-Pregnancy-640x800.png 640w, https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/bjsm\/files\/2026\/08\/Sitting-Less-and-Moving-More-During-Pregnancy.png 1080w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 478px) 100vw, 478px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><b>Authors: <\/b>Alex H. Crisp, Kara M. Whitaker<\/p>\n<p><b>References:<\/b><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Ford ND, Cox S, Ko JY, et al. Hypertensive Disorders in Pregnancy and Mortality at Delivery Hospitalization &#8211; United States, 2017-2019. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">. Apr 29 2022;71(17):585-591. doi:10.15585\/mmwr.mm7117a1<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Davenport MH, Ruchat SM, Poitras VJ, et al. Prenatal exercise for the prevention of gestational diabetes mellitus and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy: a systematic review and meta-analysis. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Br J Sports Med<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">. Nov 2018;52(21):1367-1375. doi:10.1136\/bjsports-2018-099355<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Hesketh KR, Evenson KR. Prevalence of U.S. Pregnant Women Meeting 2015 ACOG Physical Activity Guidelines. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Am J Prev Med<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">. Sep 2016;51(3):e87-9. doi:10.1016\/j.amepre.2016.05.023<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Silva-Jose C, Sanchez-Polan M, Barakat R, Gil-Ares J, Refoyo I. Level of Physical Activity in Pregnant Populations from Different Geographic Regions: A Systematic Review. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">J Clin Med<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">. Aug 8 2022;11(15)doi:10.3390\/jcm11154638<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Whitaker KM, Barone Gibbs B, Hivert MF, et al. Sedentary Behavior and Light-Intensity Physical Activity During Pregnancy and Cardiovascular Health: A Science Advisory From the American Heart Association. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Circulation<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">. May 13 2025;151(19):e990-e999. doi:10.1161\/CIR.0000000000001316<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Whitaker KM, Jones MA, Smith K, et al. Study Design and Protocol of the Multisite Pregnancy 24\/7 Cohort Study. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Am J Epidemiol<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">. Feb 5 2024;193(3):415-425. doi:10.1093\/aje\/kwad208<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h5><i><span style=\"font-family: arial, sans-serif;font-size: small\">The policy<\/span><\/i><\/h5>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-family: arial, sans-serif\">BMJ will consider content where AI technologies are used. Our approach is one of transparency. Where AI technology has been used this should be clearly described. Editors will consider the suitability of the use outlined. Our approach is in line with organisations including the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/wame.org\/page3.php?id=106\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/wame.org\/page3.php?id%3D106&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1787922792445000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3hp0Xvs2l_FHESZW7sYNp0\">World Association of Medical Editors (WAME)<\/a>\u00a0and the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/publicationethics.org\/cope-position-statements\/ai-author\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/publicationethics.org\/cope-position-statements\/ai-author&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1787922792445000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1YiPn6JHVO2B5BW5EjpPcE\">Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)<\/a>.<\/span><\/i><!--TrendMD v2.4.8--><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Why is this study important? Some people develop dangerously high blood pressure during pregnancy, a group of conditions known as hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. When left unmanaged, these conditions can lead to serious complications for both mother and baby and increase lifetime risk of cardiovascular disease. Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy affect roughly one in seven [&#8230;]<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"btn btn-secondary understrap-read-more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/bjsm\/2026\/08\/31\/sit-less-and-move-more-to-reduce-risk-of-hypertensive-disorders-of-pregnancy\/\">Read More&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":463,"featured_media":11948,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[16068,16048,1807,2840],"class_list":["post-11947","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-featured","tag-hypertension","tag-physical-activity","tag-pregnancy"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Sit less and move more to reduce risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy - BJSM blog - social media&#039;s leading SEM voice<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/bjsm\/2026\/08\/31\/sit-less-and-move-more-to-reduce-risk-of-hypertensive-disorders-of-pregnancy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Sit less and move more to reduce risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy - BJSM blog - social media&#039;s leading SEM voice\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Why is this study important? 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Some people develop dangerously high blood pressure during pregnancy, a group of conditions known as hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. When left unmanaged, these conditions can lead to serious complications for both mother and baby and increase lifetime risk of cardiovascular disease. 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