The Association between Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Cardiometabolic Health at 6 Months following a Hypertensive Pregnancy: A BP2 Sub-Study

Camilla Hirsch; Lynne Roberts; Justine Salisbury; Elizabeth Denney-Wilson; Amanda Henry; Megan Gow

doi:10.3390/nu15153294

The Association between Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Cardiometabolic Health at 6 Months following a Hypertensive Pregnancy: A BP² Sub-Study

Nutrients. 2023 Jul 25;15(15):3294. doi: 10.3390/nu15153294.

Authors

Camilla Hirsch¹, Lynne Roberts^{2

3}, Justine Salisbury⁴, Elizabeth Denney-Wilson⁵, Amanda Henry^{1

2

3}, Megan Gow^{2

6

7}

Affiliations

¹ Discipline of Women's Health, School of Clinical Medicine, UNSW Medicine and Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia.
² Women's and Children's Health, St. George Hospital, Sydney, NSW 2217, Australia.
³ St. George and Sutherland Clinical Campus, School of Clinical Medicine, UNSW Medicine and Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia.
⁴ NSW Ministry of Health, Sydney, NSW 2060, Australia.
⁵ Susan Wakil School of Nursing, University of Sydney, Camperdown, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.
⁶ Discipline of Paediatrics, School of Clinical Medicine, UNSW Medicine and Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia.
⁷ Children's Hospital Westmead Clinical School, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.

Abstract

Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) complicate 5-10% of pregnancies, with resultant lifelong increased risks of cardiovascular disease (CVD). We aimed to describe lifestyle behaviours at 6 months post-HDP in four HDP subgroups, and their association with markers of cardiometabolic health. Subgroups were chronic hypertension (CH), gestational hypertension (GH), preeclampsia, and preeclampsia superimposed on chronic hypertension (CH + PE). The BP² study is a multi-site, three-arm, randomised controlled trial. At 6 months postpartum, the NSW Population Health Survey and BP² surveys collected lifestyle behaviours and demographic data. Body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, and blood pressure (BP) were also assessed. Descriptive statistics, ANOVA and Spearman's correlation coefficients were used. Of 484 women (16% CH, 23% GH, 55% preeclampsia, and 6% CH + PE), 62% were overweight or obese. Only 6% met the recommended five vegetable and two fruit serves per day, and 43% did not meet the recommended 150 min of moderate-vigorous physical activity in five sessions per week. Adherence to both diet and physical activity recommendations was correlated with more favourable cardiometabolic outcomes, including lower BMI, waist circumference, and systolic and diastolic BP. Lifestyle interventions that improve diet and physical activity post-HDP are needed to reduce BP, BMI, and long-term CVD in this high-risk population.

Keywords: blood pressure; body mass index; hypertensive disorders of pregnancy; lifestyle; nutrition; physical activity; postpartum; waist circumference.

Publication types

Randomized Controlled Trial

MeSH terms

Blood Pressure
Cardiovascular Diseases* / epidemiology
Cardiovascular Diseases* / prevention & control
Exercise / physiology
Female
Humans
Hypertension, Pregnancy-Induced* / epidemiology
Pre-Eclampsia* / epidemiology
Pregnancy

Grants and funding

This study was funded by the NSW Health Translational Research Grants Scheme (Round 3 TRGS application 26). MG and AH’s work on the study was supported by National Health and Medical Research Council (Australia) Early Career Fellowships (APP 1158876 and GNT 1141570, respectively), and AH’s work by a NSW Health Early-Mid Career Cardiovascular Fellowship. The funding bodies had no role in the study design, data collection or analysis, nor in writing the manuscript.