Women whose pregnancy morning sickness seems normal, but includes regular episodes of vomiting will lose some weight during their first trimester. Is this a problem? At what point should a woman become concerned? Is there such a thing as too much pregnancy morning sickness? Should the expectant mother lose more than 5 percent of her body weight (for example, if before pregnancy she weighed 120 pounds and her weight fell to under 114 pounds) she should inform her OB/GYN.
If the regular episodes of vomiting become unrelenting, and she is unable to keep any food down, she should alert her OB/GYN immediately. It is very likely, that in this situation, she will need to receive intravenous fluids and electrolytes. As a safety precaution, the OB/GYN will also need to perform some tests in an effort to rule out the possibility that her vomiting may be due to a medical condition unrelated to normal pregnancy morning sickness. Some other possible reasons for the vomiting may be appendicitis, hepatitis, infectious diarrhea, urinary tract infection, peptic ulcer disease, gall bladder disease, kidney insufficiency, liver disease, hyperthyroidism, inflammation of the pancreas, or diabetic ketoacidosis.
If the pregnancy morning sickness is so severe that just the smell of food sickens her, she should try to eat in a way that, as much as possible, will bypass her sense of smell. For example, she could try blending fresh milk and fruit with ice (the cold will help suppress the odor), pour the mixture into a glass, cover the top of the glass tightly with plastic wrap, poke a straw through the plastic, and take small sips every few minutes. Juices may be diluted with water making their odors less intense.
A woman with excessive nausea as a result of pregnancy morning sickness is likely to have more success keeping her food down by eating frequent meals that consist of small amounts of nonoily foods (the oils are difficult to digest). Frequent vomiting makes it extremely important to replenish lost fluids. However, drinking liquids at meals may make her stomach feel too bloated, and further aggravate the nausea problem. The majority of OB/GYNs recommend drinking liquids between meals to help with the loss of bodily fluids, and electrolytes.
Should there be any uncertainty as to whether or not your particular situation falls into the excessive pregnancy morning sickness category, be sure to speak with your doctor before taking any action.
Carl DiNello is an Article Author whose articles are featured on websites covering the Internet's most popular topics.
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