Researchers from Bispebjerg Hospital and the University of Copenhagen analyzed 803,829 pregnancies among 475,312 women in Denmark between 2004 and 2018.
The findings were published in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine and reported by The Guardian.
Known and possible risk factors
Miscarriage affects around 15 percent of pregnant women.
Known risk factors may include age, smoking, night work, air pollution, and exposure to chemical substances.
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The study is observational, meaning it cannot prove that workplace movements directly cause miscarriage.
Movement during pregnancy
In the study, 81,307 pregnancies ended in miscarriage.
The researchers found an association between a higher risk of miscarriage and spending more time bending forward, walking, and standing at work.
The strongest association was found for forward bending of at least 30 degrees.
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Each additional hour spent bending forward during a workday was associated with a 36 percent higher risk.
An additional hour of walking was associated with an 18 percent higher risk, while an additional hour of standing work was associated with a 3 percent higher risk.
The researchers emphasize that the findings should be investigated further before they can be used to develop specific workplace recommendations.
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