How To Avoid Morning Sickness In Pregnancy

Is Morning Sickness Harmful For My Baby

Even though morning sickness can be unpleasant and distressing, there is no research to suggest that it causes harm to your baby. Nausea may, however, influence your food choices. Both you and your baby need an ongoing source of a range of nutrients in the foods you eat. Speak with a health professional if you think that your morning sickness is getting in the way of healthy eating.

It is also important to prevent dehydration, so if you are vomiting and unable to keep fluids down, see your doctor immediately.

Carry A Morning Sickness Survival Kit

No matter how many times it happens, puking in public isn’t something you ever get used to. But, stocking your bag with some essentials may offer some reassurance that you’re prepared.

Dr. Greenfield suggests packing a clean shirt and a toothbrush, toothpaste, or bottle of mouthwash to help you freshen up. Breath mints are a smart move, too.

It’s also a good idea to carry a plastic bag for those dreaded can’t-hold-it-until-I-reach-a-bathroom moments, plus a snack stash of crackers or pretzels that you can munch when your stomach starts to feel empty or upset.

Eat A Hearty And Healthy Breakfast

Always eat breakfast first thing in the morning. Since an empty stomach increases your blood sugar level and triggers nausea, eating breakfast can give you morning sickness relief. If you generally experience nausea or vomiting right after you wake up, keep a box of crackers on your nightstand to snack on right away.

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What Kind Of Magnesium

Here is what I did :

The best way to supplement with magnesium, in my opinion, is by using it on the skin. This is not only the safest way, since the body will only use what is needed, but the most effective.

Unlike internal doses of magnesium, topical magnesium does not have to pass through the digestive system and kidneys and can more quickly enter the blood and tissues of the body.

I have experimented with a variety of magnesium supplements over the years and now stick exclusively to topical magnesium spray because I found it to be the most effective .

In fact, I was suffering from low Vitamin D for years despite spending regular time in the sun and taking supplemental D3 at the suggestion of my doctor. Magnesium is needed for proper Vitamin D absorption and it wasnt until I increased my use of magnesium on my skin that my Vitamin D levels finally went up.

If youd like to learn more about the importance of magnesium and its various actions in the body, Id suggest the book The Magnesium Miracle by Carolyn Dean.

Since digestion changes during pregnancy, it can be difficult to absorb magnesium correctly, especially once you are pregnant. I found the magnesium oil seemed to be the easiest for me to absorb, and even before pregnancy, I noticed the biggest difference in my regularity from the skin oil.

Magnesium is also an important mineral during pregnancy, so even if you are already pregnant, it would be worth a try to lessen morning sickness.

Eat Small Amounts Often

Many find that grazing all day helps with morning sickess. “I call it the Six Meal Solution,” says Murkoff. “When your tummy is empty, the stomach acids have nothing to feast on but your stomach lining, compounding nausea.

On the other hand, eating too much can overtax the digestive system, also leading to quease. Keeping your tummy a little bit full all day and all night is the best defense against morning sickness.”

Murkoff suggests keeping a snack stash nearby at all times. Nibbling a little before you get out of bed in the morning can stave off nausea, and a light bedtime snack will stabilize your blood sugar throughout the night.

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How To Avoid Morning Sickness

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This pregnancy has been my absolute easiest by far! My pregnancies had been getting easier as Ive learned more about health and real food, but this one held a surprising difference! So much so, in fact, that I was really glad to hear a heart beat to make sure I was indeed pregnant.

To help understand what a change this had been for me, I should explain: I never had morning sickness to the level that several of my friends have had. I never came close to being hospitalized, though I didnt usually eat much the first few months.

With my first especially, the smell of food would sometimes leave me running for the nearest bathroom or bushes. The worst part, for me, was the fatigue. Especially after the first one, I didnt have time to be tired, but the first few months, Id play with my kids or read to them while laying on their bedroom floor, and Id fall asleep any chance I got.

This time, I was a little more tired but didnt notice it at all if I got to bed by 10 p.m. There were mornings that I didnt feel like eating right away, but I wasnt repulsed by food. One time, I chugged a huge glass of water and took Fermented Cod Liver Oil on an empty stomach and had a little nausea for about 10 minutes, but that was pretty much the extent of it.

What Changed?

Does Morning Sickness Harm My Baby

Mild to moderate nausea and vomiting of pregnancy usually is not harmful to you or the fetus. However, it can become a problem if you cant keep food or liquid down, become dehydrated, and lose weight. Unmanaged severe nausea and vomiting can prevent you from getting the nutrition you need and affect the weight of your baby at birth.

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What Can I Do To Feel Better If I Have Morning Sickness

There are a few things you can do to feel better. These include:

• Eat a few crackers or toast in the morning to help settle your stomach. Keep a few crackers at bedside and eat a couple before getting up.
• Eat five or six small meals a day instead of three large meals.
• Avoid spicy and fatty foods. Eat bland foods such as bananas, rice, dry toast, plain baked potato, gelatin, broth, eggs, tofu or applesauce.
• Eat healthy snacks between meals, such as yogurt, peanut butter on apple slices or celery, cheese, milk or nuts.
• Drink plenty of fluids, especially water, throughout the day.
• Take your prenatal vitamins with a snack. If your prenatal vitamin contains iron, try taking it at bedtime. Talk with your doctor about other vitamin options.
• Avoid odors, flickering lights, other situations that bother you and trigger your nausea.
• Make tea with real grated ginger or try ginger candies.
• Get plenty of rest.
• Keep rooms well-ventilated, turn on a fan, or go outside from time to time to get some fresh air.
• Smell fresh-smelling, pleasant scents such as lemon, orange or mint.

Other methods may help reduce nausea. Talk with your healthcare provider before trying these:

• Acupressure wristband. These bands apply pressure to certain points on your wrist.
• Acupuncture. In this treatment method, thin needles are put into your skin.

Do not use marijuana to treat morning sickness! It has not been shown to be safe for the fetus during pregnancy.

Keep Physically And Mentally Active

Being physically active has been found to improve symptoms in women who experience nausea during pregnancy.

Keeping busy can help take your mind off the feelings of nausea. Reading a book, doing puzzles, watching television, playing cards, or going for short walks around the block will help to keep you preoccupied.

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Dietitians Tell You How To Survive Morning Sickness

Cooking LightBrierley Horton

Youre pregnanthooray! Then, for some, morning sickness sets in. Whether its true morning sickness, lasts all day, or hits you like a freight train in the evening, it is absolutely no fun.

Perhaps foods you once loved, you now abhor or the smell of your significant others favorite meal has you running to the porcelain throne. Whatever sets you off, you should know which foods might be appealing and how to quell that nausea.

Frequently Asked Questionsexpand All

Your ob-gyn or other obstetric care provider might suspect that you have one of these conditions if you have signs or symptoms that usually do not occur with nausea and vomiting of pregnancy. Some of these signs and symptoms include:

• Nausea and vomiting that occurs for the first time after 9 weeks of pregnancy

• Abdominal pain or tenderness

• Enlarged thyroid gland

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What Do I Do If My Morning Sickness Is Severe

When morning sickness is severe, it is known as hyperemesis gravidarum. A pregnant woman who experiences severe vomiting for an extended period of time may need monitoring and treatment in hospital. An intravenous drip is inserted to replace essential salts and fluids and prevent dehydration. If you are vomiting whenever you eat or drink, consult a health care professional, since early treatment can protect you and your baby from health complications.

Consume Ginger In Any Form

Adding ginger to your diet is effective for nausea and has properties to settle your stomach in a good way. You can consume ginger in any form like:

Peppermint tea is also known to help with nausea and vomiting.

How to make peppermint tea for pregnant women

Boil 6 teabags of peppermint tea in 4 cups of water. Add it to a gallon pitcher and fill the rest of the pitcher with water. Also, you can add some sugar or lemon. Honey is a good alternative too.

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Can Morning Sickness Actually Be Beneficial

Although morning sickness might be very uncomfortable and inconvenient, youll be happy to known it might be for a good cause. Numerous studies have found that women who experience morning sickness are significantly less likely to miscarry than women who do not, and women who vomit suffer fewer miscarriages than those who experience nausea alone.

Several hypotheses have developed throughout the past century in regard to why pregnant women deal with nausea. According to the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior at Cornell University, today its believed that morning sickness serves as an adaptive function that helps:

• support the developing fetus and placenta by changing certain hormone levels
• make the moms body partition calories and nutrients being consumed to be used for the growing baby/placenta, instead of being stored as body fat
• reduce cravings and appetite for ingredients, chemicals and foods that might harm the baby or cause too much weight gain
• protect the mom from infections, illnesses and even death during a period in pregnancy when the immune system is suppressed
• force the pregnant woman to reach a healthier weight early on in the pregnancy if she was overweight to begin with

How Morning Sickness Can Help Protect Mom and Baby

Final Thoughts on Treating Morning Sickness

Try Drinking Carbonated Drink

Typically, carbonated drinks may cause gas but for some women, soda has a settling effect for nausea. You can try sprite with lime and see if that helps. Take small sips, do not gulp, everything and anything all at once.

Surprisingly, for some women, chilly drinks are easier to stomach down, while for others, warm drinks or food work well. Try switching between the two, you may find what works for you.

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When Does It Start

The feeling of nausea and vomiting usually starts around 6 weeks of being pregnant and because many women dont even know that they are pregnant that early it is a also one of the first pregnancy symptoms.

Around week 13-27 or the second trimester the morning sickness should improve and disappear.

Unless you are one of the very unlucky ones that has to deal with it until the end.

Morning sickness can also cause you to react very sensitive to smells and certain foods.

This may also be interesting: Hyperemesis gravidarum the extreme morning sickness

Why Do Pregnant Women Get Morning Sickness

Although the exact cause of morning sickness is unknown, it is associated with hormonal changes that occur during pregnancy.

An imbalance of dietary potassium and magnesium, low blood sugar and low levels of vitamin B6 are all known causes of nausea. Following a diet that includes whole foods with a wide range of vitamins and minerals will help you stay healthy and well during your pregnancy.

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What Is Hyperemesis Gravidarum

Hyperemesis gravidarum is simply increased nausea and vomiting in pregnancy due to the normal increase in one of the pregnancy hormones. If you are experiencing these symptoms it is important to tell your obstetric provider because if left alone, it can cause severe dehydration. There are simple things you can do at home to help decrease nausea and vomiting and prevent from becoming dehydrated.

Is It Bad If You Dont Get Morning Sickness

If youre one among the lucky 20% of women who dont experience morning sickness/nausea during pregnancy, you may be feeling nervous. When people ask, How are you feeling? and you guiltily reply, Totally fine!only to get strange looks and listen to stories of how they threw up for months. You may be worrying about your lack of nausea/vomiting, but understand that many women have completely healthy pregnancies without feeling a least bit sick.

Some women are more sensitive to hormonal changes or have more sensitive stomachs, which can make them more susceptible to nausea than others. Its also common to suffer from nausea that comes and goessome days you may feel yuck and other days you may feel just fine.

If you are worried about not getting any morning sickness or if it suddenly stops, contact your OB-GYN. They will be happy to assist and reassure you by checking your babys health to ensure everything is okay.

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Avoid Spicy Or Oily Food

Avoiding greasy or spicy food significantly helps with morning sickness. Sometimes oily or spicy food may trigger painful bloating. Especially during the first trimester.

Eating fennel seeds for bloating after every meal is a highly effective remedy for pregnant, non-pregnant, breastfeeding moms, or anyone who has gas issues on a regular basis.

However, for some women, nausea tends to go away by the time you enter the second trimester.

How To Help Morning Sickness

Pregnancy can be an amazing ride, but the morning sickness that often accompanies it isn’t so great. Thankfully, there are ways to manage it. Remedies that can help with morning sickness include rest, identifying and avoiding triggers, hydration, and medication.

According to Marjorie Greenfield, M.D., an OB-GYN and author of The Working Woman’s Pregnancy Book, approximately 70% of people experience nausea early in pregnancy, and about 50% experience vomiting.

“It’s very, very common, but it’s also incredibly varied,” Dr. Greenfield says. “Lots of people are sick all day, some are sick mostly in the evening, and others are sick if they haven’t gotten enough sleep.”

So when do you get morning sickness? According to Dr. Greenfield, pregnancy nausea can start as early as six weeks and tends to peak around the eighth and ninth weeks.

If you’re tired of feeling queasy, read on to learn 15 tips for how to stop morning sickness.

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Vomiting And Morning Sickness

Nausea and vomiting in pregnancy, often known as morning sickness, is very common in early pregnancy.

It can affect you at any time of the day or night or you may feel sick all day long.

Morning sickness is unpleasant, and can significantly affect your day-to-day life. But it usually clears up by weeks 16 to 20 of your pregnancy and does not put your baby at any increased risk.

There is a chance of developing a severe form of pregnancy sickness called hyperemesis gravidarum. This can be serious, and there’s a chance you may not get enough fluids in your body or not get enough nutrients from your diet . You may need specialist treatment, sometimes in hospital.

Sometimes urinary tract infections can also cause nausea and vomiting. A UTI usually affects the bladder, but can spread to the kidneys.

Ways To Prevent Morning Sickness

Expectant mothers should allow their body the time needed to wake up in a slow manner. Try to avoid rushing around in the morning, instead move slowly and have some snacks near the dresser for easy munching. Sometimes an empty stomach can lead to morning sickness.

Snack numerous times throughout the day as opposed to fewer larger meals. This technique usually works to prevent nausea.

Avoid eating spicy foods or high fat foods prior to bed time. These types of foods can also make a pregnant woman feel nauseous. Instead try eating some bland foods like chicken broth or plain vegetables and fruits. This will keep the stomach well settled.

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