When a pregnant woman has daily bouts of nausea, it’s no surprise. But that does not mean it can be explained. Considering how queasy many women feel, they have a perfect right to complain and snap at their partner now and then. When your stomach feels like it’s riding a rollercoaster, you have Morning Sickness.
Morning sickness – which doesn’t necessarily occur in the Morning – may be the result of rising levels of estrogen, mild dehydration (not enough water intake to keep your body wet enough on the inside), or the lower blood sugar characteristic of early pregnancy.
Stress, traveling, some foods, antenatal vitamins and certain smells can aggravate the problem.
Typically, morning Sickness begins around week 6 of pregnancy, about the same time that the placenta begins serious production of human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG), a special pregnancy hormone. In most women, symptoms peak during week 8 or 9 and wane after week 13.
The good news is that morning sickness seems to be a sign that the pregnancy is going well. A research shows that women who vomit during their 1st trimester were less likely to miscarry or deliver prematurely. Morning sickness may also play a role in promoting healthy placenta development.
That cheers you some, but you definitely need some thing extra to sail through that difficult period.
1) Nothing beats morning sickness like a cup of ginger tea. Use a ginger tea bag, or add ½ teaspoon grated root ginger to 1 cup very hot water, leave to infuse for 5 minutes, strain & sip.
2) Try raspberry-leaf tea, which is often used to help with morning sickness – and a lot of women drink it in gradually increasing doses in later pregnancy to ease labor because it acts as a uterine tonic. Use 1-2 teaspoons of the dried herb per cup of hot water, but don’t drink more than 1 cup a day in the first 3 months of pregnancy (and avoid raspberry-leaf tablets).
3) As already mentioned, dehydration is one big culprit. Women who drink a glass of water every hour have a lot less morning sickness. You should also drink a glass of water every time you get up in the night to go to toilet. This helps to ensure that you start your day feeling as good as you can.
4) In the morning, you might be able to prevent nausea by eating before you get out of bed. Keep some plain crackers or dry biscuits on your bedside table and have a few as soon as you wake up, just to put something in your stomach.
5) Eat a number of meals throughout the day. Small amounts of food are much easier to tolerate than a large meal. In fact, you might want to have a snack every hour or two, keeping the servings small.
6) Avoid fried-fatty foods – Anything fried often seems to make pregnant women more nauseated. The body takes longer to digest such foods, which means that they sit in the stomach longer. You need to put glucose into your system quickly and easily by eating simple sugars, like fruit sugars.
7) Keep raw almonds close to you all the times. Snacking on them fulfills the requirement of small, frequent meals. They contain some fat, some protein and are high in B vitamins.
Try wearing the acupressure wristbands designed for people who suffer from seasickness. They apply constant pressure to acupressure points of nausea.
A variety of natural, alternative health care treatment options are also available. During this period of the pregnant woman’s life, drug therapy is an issue of great concern especially since the fetus is so vulnerable. Natural remedies that are specifically formulated for use during pregnancy can be very helpful to the mother-to-be suffering from morning sickness. Remember that just because the remedy is natural does not mean that it is safe during pregnancy!
Some herbs are not recommended during pregnancy, and pregnant women are advised to only use products specifically formulated for safe use during pregnancy and to consult their health care professionals if they are in any doubt as to the safety of any medication – natural, OTC or prescription.
Rather than just treating morning sickness symptoms, specially formulated herbal and homeopathic remedies have the potential to ensure a healthy pregnancy for you and your baby – as nature intended! Correctly chosen natural therapies, safe for pregnancy, are also free from undesired side effects that can occur with prescription medications. A naturopath or homeopath will examine your diet, exercise regime, stress levels and personal habits and will be able to make recommendations to improve your lifestyle safely.
