Morning Sickness during Pregnancy

Morning sickness is one of the best known symptoms of pregnancy. Three out of four pregnant women experience nausea and vomiting in the early months of their pregnancies. Unfortunately for most women – morning sickness does not restrict itself to the morning and can happen any time of the day.

Morning sickness is certainly not one of the nicer things that pregnancy brings along and can be irritating, incapacitating and depressing. It can leave Expectant moms feeling unhappy and gloomy. However, understanding what brings on morning sickness – can feel like a ray of light in the gloom.

What exactly triggers morning sickness is still unclear – but the prime culprits – it is believed – are hCG and Progesterone. High levels of these chemicals circulating in the blood cause morning sickness. Despite their seemingly tyrannical actions on the guts of moms to be however, these chemicals are in fact do-gooders and the nausea and vomiting that they cause is “good news”. These seemingly nasty chemicals are in fact the ones - that keep the pregnancy going and the growing baby healthy.

Of course severe nausea and vomiting are certainly not good news for either mother or baby – and warrant consultation with a doctor to prevent dehydration and malnutrition.

In spite of the fact that they are indicators of “good news” – nausea and vomiting remain undesirable.

Expectant moms suffering from morning sickness can do the following to minimise their symptoms;

• Eat small frequent light meals through the day
• When you wake up in the morning take a few minutes to sit up and step out of bed instead of springing up
• Slowly munch on a dry crunchy biscuit – like a Rusk or Marie or Cream Cracker – as soon as you wake up
• Stick to bland foods that are low on fat
• If food aromas are triggering your nausea – eat food cold rather than hot. Hot foods have stronger aromas
• Try to get rest. Nausea can get much worse when you are tired
• A stroll usually relieves nausea
•  Sip water between meals. Do not gulp
• Ginger added to food minimises gassiness and reduces nausea. However ginger in large quantities may be harmful to your baby – so use with caution
• Reduce your stress and anxiety

Do not panic about depriving your child of nutrients due to your poor diet. If you are terribly concerned consult your doctor and ask for a vitamin prescription.

Author Bio

Dr Debmita Dutta (MBBS, MD) is a Parenting and Wellness Consultant. She belives Parenting – is an Art that is deeply rooted in Science – Medical Science. It is impossible to Parent right without an understanding of how your child’s growing Brain and Body function – because his / her Brain and Body are what make him the person he is.