Soccer players who are pregnant or have recently given birth can kick off the season with more confidence, using a new FIFA tool developed in collaboration with a University of Alberta researcher.
Two decision aids, one each for playing during pregnancy and for returning to the game post-partum, have been launched by FIFA, an international governing body for the sport.
The step-by-step guides, developed and validated through a pair of corresponding studies, are the first to provide "practical how-to advice" for players, their doctors, physiotherapists and coaches on deciding when to leave and then get back to the pitch, says Dr. Margie Davenport, a pregnancy researcher in the Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation.
The decision-making criteria fill a critical gap not covered by existing physical activity recommendations for pregnant athletes, says Davenport, senior author and lead for the FIFA project.
"While various international and national guidelines offer general recommendations on what to do physically and why, they all lack actionable frameworks on the 'how,'" she notes.
Because of that, the typical default is to pull players completely from their teams once they become pregnant — which is not only unnecessary, but often counterproductive to an athlete's health and long-term performance, Davenport notes.
"Our research supports continued training throughout pregnancy to reduce the risk of complications and to prevent injury postpartum."
The decision aids and associated training frameworks now turn high-level recommendations into a practical guide to make informed decisions about players' daily training and recovery, she says.
To develop the new FIFA tool, Davenport and her co-researchers looked at existing studies that helped highlight barriers and key considerations to elite sport participation during pregnancy and after childbirth. They then identified key health screening components, and had doctors, athletesand coaches test the aids to make sure they were practical, accurate and easy to use.
Designed to serve players at professional, amateur and recreational levels, the decision aids offer flowcharts to assess pregnant or post-partum athletes for health conditions where medical guidance is needed. They're also evaluated for related considerations such as mental health, fear of movement and pelvic health.
"A player doesn't necessarily have to stop training for each of those three latter complications, but it is a flag to make sure that they go and get treated," Davenport notes.
The decision aids also include graduated training frameworks that help determine whether the athletes should progress, stay put or regress in their playing activity, and provide examples of what the type of training would look like at each stage.
The FIFA tools are a win for players who want to stay in the game they love, and they are "thrilled," she says.
"This is what they've been asking for, for years. Before the development of these decision aids, there was confusion about how to train during pregnancy or postpartum, so this now empowers them to make informed decisions so they can continue to play as long as they are able, if they want."
Davenport adds that the tools "take away the anxiety and the uncertainty, and provide referral pathways for when a player needs support from their physician, their psychologist, their lactation consultant. It elevates the quality of support they get from their teams."
FIFA's creation of the aids is also an important "holistic" recognition of players, Davenport says.
"It's visionary that a sporting organization is stepping up to find ways to put play into practice. This is showing athletes how to be able to make those choices of both starting a family and making a career."
