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Health

Pregnancy nausea

Pregnancy nausea would have to be one of nature’s most challenging but clever strategies of health. It’s absolutely nasty to experience and one can feel as though their whole world is influenced by what they smell and taste.

The intention of this awful symptom is to ensure that you don’t eat anything that could harm your growing bub and cause you to get a stomach bug. More importantly it’s a clever strategy so that you will slow down. It sounds too simple to be true but ask any Mum what is happening when nausea strikes and she will most likely tell you that she was too tired to think straight.

First trimester nausea is more pronounced in women who need more sleep. First trimester is actually a time when women should be in bed asleep at 7 or 8pm and if allowed, will often sleep for 13 hours easily. If you think about what the body is trying to achieve – build a baby, build a placenta, and do whatever is necessary for the mum’s body then you can understand why the mum is so tired. Nausea is the quickest way the body can tell a mum “slow down, we can’t manage everything”. It’s challenging as I know most mums like to maintain a ‘normal’ life so that they can keep their secret safe. It’s good to know that nausea will ease quite quickly if they listen to this message.

The hormonal surges that both sustain and progress the pregnancy are a contributing factor. Often as the body is attaining a deeper level of the pregnancy, a surge of hormones depletes nutrient stores for their production. In these instances adequate levels of vitamin B6 and zinc can be beneficial.

Another consideration is fluctuating blood sugar levels and the associated effects on the mum. In the first trimester especially all a woman will crave are carbohydrates and cheese. Its either corn thins and cheese, cheese toasties or cheese on toast. The concept of eating a piece of protein is often furthest from a Mum’s mind and just thinking about it can aggravate the nausea. It is important to encourage regular small meals (every 3 hours) with protein hits to stabilise blood sugar levels and above all to stay away from sugar and sugar-rich foods as this will only compound the problem.