The L.E.N.S. System makes it easier than ever for moms-to-be to stay healthy and active!

West Michigan doctors have developed the LENS system in conjunction with the mobile app babyQ (www.babyQ.com) to help pregnant women focus on four major categories related to a healthy pregnancy: Lifestyle, Exercise, Nutrition and Stress. With this system; mom-to-be are able to focus and stay informed on their baby’s health and development throughout all of the stages of pregnancy.

With the recent headlines featuring celebrities and how they are staying fit during their pregnancy; The Forde Group, led by Doctor Gareth Forde, a co-creator of babyQ has taken their LENS system and compiled a list of reasons for every mom-to-be to consider being active and fit during pregnancy.

The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology recommends that pregnant women exercise 30 minutes or more most days of the week. In addition to providing many benefits for mom and baby, staying active can help moms-to-be meet the mental, physical, and social challenges of pregnancy. Unfortunately, not enough pregnant women are physically active during their pregnancies. Research indicates that as few as 40% of pregnant women exercise, even though about 92% are encouraged by their physicians to do so.

Here are some great benefits of an active pregnancy:

Enjoy a Healthier Pregnancy

Exercise can reduce your risk of preeclampsia, high blood pressure in pregnancy, which can cause serious complications for mothers and babies. Exercise during pregnancy may also reduce the risk of gestational diabetes and preterm birth.

Feel better during Pregnancy

Exercise during pregnancy can help improve sleep, reduce pregnancy-related aches and pains, and increase energy to complete daily activities.

Delivery is Easier

An increased fitness level has also been associated with shorter labor, less need for pain medications, and less exhaustion during labor.

Have Healthier Kids

The infants of women who exercised during pregnancy are at lower risk of being overweight or obese later in life.

More about babyQ

babyQ was developed by Mark Gostine MD and Gareth Forde MD, PhD who developed the program after their own research of nearly 40,000 deliveries in the West Michigan region. Both doctors emphasize the power a pregnant woman has to turn on her baby’s best genes, through proper lifestyle, behaviors, nutrition, and stress management. Featured in the January issue of Pregnancy & Newbown Magazine.

Disclaimer & Research

Consult your healthcare provider before beginning or continue an exercise program. Your health care provider can offer personal exercise guidelines, based on your medical history and current physical condition.

1) American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. (2002).Exercise during pregnancy and the postpartum period: Technical Bulletin 267. Washington, DC: ACOG Press.
2) Field, T. (2012). Prenatal exercise research. Infant Behavior and Development, 35, 397-407.
3) Clapp, J. F. (1990). The course of labor after endurance exercise during pregnancy. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, 163, 1799-805.
4) Ruchat, S., Davenport, M. H., Giroux, I., et al. (2012). Nutrition and exercise reduce excessive weight gain in normal-weight pregnant women. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 44, 1419-1426.