MORNING SICKNESS AND HYDRATION
It’s common for women to experience morning sickness with episodes of vomiting in the first trimester of pregnancy. Some women even experience severe morning sickness, which has a medical term "hyperemesis gravidarum".
Because of the constant vomiting dehydration is especially concerning during pregnancy. It’s not just mom that needs proper hydration, but your child needs hydration as well. Hydration plays a vital part in fetal development. For this reason mothers must be conscious of proper hydration through pregnancy.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT MORNING SICKNESS AND HEALTH
In this article I will answer the most common questions moms ask about morning sickness, especially morning sickness health. Here are a few short questions and answers, but keep reading for the detailed answers:
Q: What's best to drink when pregnant?
A: Drinks with electrolytes.
Q: What foods are good for morning sickness?
A: It will very from mom to mom, but here are a few suggestions to get you started.
- Stay away from acidic food
- Lower your sugar intake
- Ginger, lemon, peppermint & spearmint
- Frozen fruity popsicles (also good for hydration)
- Bland fruit like bananas and avocados
- Cold food seems to work better than hot
Q: Does drinking water help morning sickness?
A: With many women plain water doesn't sit well. Try different types of water, but cold. We love cold, sparking spring water.
Q: What drinks should I stay away from during pregnancy?
A: Acidic, sugary, caffeine and alcoholic.
MORNING SICKNESS CAN LEAD TO DEHYDRATION
Often pregnant women don't even know they are dehydrated because the symptoms are attributed to the pregnancy, dehydration symptoms like headaches, queasiness and fatigue. Vomiting in pregnancy often leads to dehydration because mom doesn't realize how much fluid she is losing and it's even worse if she has diarrhea.
The inability for mom to retain food makes it worse because she may not be meeting her dietary needs, which include the infant. She may be reducing weight, as well as a losing of fluids, combined with the loss of stomach acid that happens throughout vomiting. Her body is working harder than it's ever worked and as a result is heating up.
When you combine all of this you can see how easily a pregnant mom can become dehydrated and lose vital electrolytes. You must replace the fluids AND electrolytes. The human body does not produce electrolytes. We get electrolytes through consumption.
This leads to the question, what are you doing to replace the lost electrolytes that are vital for you and the baby?
WHAT HELPS WITH MORNING SICKNESS DEHYDRATION?
HYDRATION! While your body is working overtime, you NEED to stay hydrated and fed.
Our HYDRATE electrolyte powder is an excellent, healthy, and natural way to cure morning sickness. Electrolytes help with morning sickness, because you are putting the GOOD stuff back into your body. The lemon taste is refreshing (and many women say that sour flavors can help nausea caused by morning sickness and helps replenish the key nutrients it needs during this time. Minerals are the foundation of all life, and you are creating a life inside you. During this time it’s more important than ever to replace lost MINERALS + ELECTROLYTES and pure water.
The best way to stay hydrated through morning sickness, especially if you are sick and pregnant, is to do hydrate throughout the day, not just during or after the morning sickness occurs. But if you’re drinking anything other than water, be sure to look at the ingredients - many hydration drinks on the market are loaded with sugar and fake flavors made in a lab. HYDRATE is formulated with clean, real, organic, non-GMO ingredients and has no added sugar, so it’s meant to be consumed daily.
ABOUT PREGNANCY AND HYDRATION, FROM AN EXPERT
Hilary Sadler RN, BSN, CLC, works in women's health as a labor and delivery nurse, newborn nurse, and lactation consultant, in Charleston, SC. She has seen the need for prenatal education related to newborn care, what to expect during childbirth, as well as helping educate expectant parents about what to expect with breastfeeding a newborn. She is a plethora of information and experience.
She recommends some other natural options that may be helpful for treating morning sickness, such as:
- Dietary changes can be helpful. Women should try to avoid environmental triggers and foods and smells that may cause them to feel nauseous. Eating smaller, more frequent meals can also help. Try eating crackers prior to getting out of your bed in the morning. Ginger in many different forms has also been known to be helpful for morning sickness. Acupuncture and acupressure can be helpful. Although we don't have a lot of evidence-based research to support this claim, this practice is not harmful to the mother or fetus and therefore may be beneficial, even as a placebo effect.
- There are acupressure wrist bands that many women who have experienced morning sickness will swear by!
- Taking folic acid during pregnancy can also help with nausea and vomiting.
- Also, make sure your prenatal vitamin isn't causing you to feel nauseous or vomit. There are many options for vitamins available, and it definitely isn't a one size fits all.
HOW TO STAY HYDRATED WITH SEVERE MORNING SICKNESS
“Morning sickness is a dumb name for something that lasted all day/every day for a solid 10 weeks. It felt like a hangover that never went away - I was weak and constantly nauseous. I spent most of my time on the couch and could barely keep down food. The only way I can explain it: it felt like my mouth was a swamp, and the only thing that sounded refreshing was citrus fruit.
For my morning sickness remedy I ate so many oranges and grapefruits and then would make flavored water with lemon and limes during those awful times. I didn't know about HYDRATE electrolyte drink then, but I have started sending it to all my friends as soon as I find out they are pregnant. Whether they suffer from the stupidly-named "morning sickness" or not, it's a good way to ensure you're staying hydrated while pregnant with morning sickness and your body is working overtime.” - Megan
We wish you the best of luck, mamas to be! This [morning sickness] too shall pass. Take care of yourself - stay hydrated, eat, and sleep well and hope you feel better soon!