Home Remedies for Morning Sickness

Morning sickness is also called nausea gravidarum. It causes nausea and in many cases vomiting in women who are in the early stages of pregnancy. It usually restricts itself to the first trimester of pregnancy, but in some cases, women suffer with morning sickness even up to the end of pregnancy. Typically, morning sickness begins around the sixth week of pregnancy and usually stops by the twelfth week. Morning sickness is also sometimes seen in women who use hormonal replacement therapy or hormonal contraception. It is called morning sickness as it begins in the early morning and alleviates as the day progresses.

Symptoms of Morning Sickness

Sometimes, morning sickness is so severe that it causes dehydration, weight loss, alkalosis, which reduces the hydrogen ion concentration in the blood plasma, and hypokalemia, which causes a decrease in the potassium level in the body. A condition called hyperemesis gravidarum, which occurs in just one percent of pregnant women, is a more severe form of morning sickness. Such patients may need to be hospitalized. Besides the symptoms of nausea and vomiting, morning sickness can be accompanied by extreme fatigue, sleepiness, backaches, constipation, frequent urination, food cravings, increased sensitivity to smells, abdominal cramps, as well as darkening and sensitivity of breasts.

Causes of Morning Sickness

Morning sickness is viewed as a sign of a healthy pregnancy. But, it is not the deciding factor since many women do not suffer with morning sickness but still have healthy pregnancies. Doctors also have seen a relation between morning sickness and miscarriages. The more the morning sickness, the lesser is the chance of miscarriage. Morning sickness could also be due to the increase of estrogen levels circulating in the blood. Progesterone could be another cause of morning sickness. Progesterone is known to cause a softening of stomach muscles to accept the fetus, but the flipside is that is slows down the digestion and absorption of food, which increases the stomach acids, causing nausea and vomiting. Another theory is that morning sickness is caused by the increase of HCG (human chorionic gonadotopin), which increases after implantation of fetus takes place and continues to increase up to the twelfth week.

Home remedies for Morning Sickness

• Try eating a dry cracker or digestive biscuit before you get out of bed.

• Taking naps during the day is an amazing way of dealing with the morning sickness.

• Also get good rest in the nights.

• Breathe in a lot of fresh air, especially when strong smells are around you.

• Stay away from uncomfortable weather conditions, especially heat as it is prone to increase the nausea.

Diet for Morning Sickness

• Avoid greasy and spicy foods and any food that is difficult to digest.

• Be led by your cravings. They usually work well for you.

• Have smaller meals at smaller intervals rather than eating heavy meals all at once.

• Have ginger or lemon tea to ease the nausea.

Other suggestions for Morning Sickness

Getting out of bed slowly and never brushing your teeth on an empty stomach can really help. If the morning sickness worsens, consult your doctor immediately.