Morning Sickness is One of the Trademark Signs of Pregnancy

Morning sickness is a common and typical pregnancy symptom that mainly occurs during the first trimester. The symptom is characterized by occasional vomiting and nausea. Although many perceive morning sickness occurs in the morning only, a pregnant woman is likely to experience discomfort at any time of the day.

You are likely to experience morning sickness during the first four months of your pregnancy and this is usually the first sign that a woman is pregnant. Nausea and vomiting during pregnancy in most women typically start in the sixth week and peaks during the ninth week. Morning sickness mostly disappears by the twelfth to eighteenth week. However, some women may experience morning sickness throughout the entire nine months of their pregnancies.

How Morning Sickness Occurs

Nausea and vomiting are the main symptoms of morning sickness. However, they can be accompanied by other common symptoms of early pregnancy, which include:

• Fatigue
• Dizziness
• Thirst
• Aversion to certain foods
• Sensitivity to smell
• Increased sense of smell
• A feeling of excessive tiredness

Nausea, vomiting, and general discomfort during pregnancy do not harm the growing fetus. However, some women tend to experience severe morning sickness. The condition is referred to as hyperemesis gravidarum. A pregnant woman experiences difficulty holding foods or drinks down and has a sudden weight loss in serious morning sickness. In such cases, you are advised to seek medical attention immediately to ensure that you and your baby are safe.

While nothing can be singled out as the exact cause of morning sickness, certain factors have been linked to playing a major part in causing morning sickness. Factors that have been linked to causing nausea, vomiting and general discomfort during pregnancy include:

1. The increasing hormone HCG is commonly referred to as the pregnancy hormone. As the hormone increases, morning sickness tends to peak.
2. An increase in the levels of standard feminine hormones in the body has been linked to the relaxation of digestive tract muscles, making digestion less efficient.
3. Nausea and vomiting have been linked to the metallic taste experienced by many pregnant women.
4. Discomfort, nausea, and vomiting in some pregnant women result from heartburn or gastrointestinal reflux disease, common during pregnancy.
5. The majority of pregnant women are likely to experience a sharper sense of smell during pregnancy, resulting in nausea and vomiting.

Higher hormone levels tend to increase your risk of experiencing morning sickness. Other factors that are likely to increase the risk of vomiting and nausea in pregnant women include:

• Brain sensitivity
• Hot weather conditions
• Emotional stress
• Physical or mental fatigue
• First-time pregnancy
• Genes

Tips for Dealing with Morning Sickness

While the effective remedy to morning sickness is patience until it wears out, there are a few strategies to relieve nausea and vomiting experienced during pregnancy. The strategies to combat morning sickness usually involve lifestyle changes. Some of the tips recommended for dealing with morning sickness include:

1. Avoid smells, foods, or places that make you sick or uncomfortable
2. Get as much rest as possible since fatigue and tiredness are known to worsen morning sickness
3. Make sure your body is always hydrated. Drinking plenty of water is a recommendation for preventing vomiting.
4. Switch to eating cold foods if the smell of hot foods is making you sick or nauseous.
5. Eat small amounts of plain foods that are rich in carbohydrate and have a low-fat content, such as rice, pasta, crackers, or bread, frequently
6. Consume more foods and drinks containing ginger. Some theories link ginger to reduced chances of vomiting and nausea.

There are severe cases where even after practicing all the above lifestyle changes, nausea and vomiting do not go away or reduce. In such scenarios, the doctor may recommend a short-term treatment for morning sickness. The medicine is referred to as antiemetic and is safe for use during pregnancy. The medicine is often administered as a tablet, but you will be injected or given medicine to insert in your bottom if you cannot take it in.