About Pregnancy

Tips for Morning Sickness

It's actually a misnomer. Morning sickness can strike at anytime of the day or night, sometimes all day and all night.

I recently read a book from the early 1990s that said morning sickness was now a thing of the past. I bet you'd have trouble explaining that to those of us who routinely wind up hanging our heads over the toilet.

In any case about 50% of all pregnant women will experience some form of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. Trying to eat a healthy diet can become very difficult when you've also got to deal with problems like food aversions, a sensitive sniffer, and a growling, churning stomach. Here are some ideas to help you get along your days and nights, and hopefully feel a little bit better.

• Eat something high in protein before going to bed. Helps your blood sugar stay more level.
• Two crackers before your head leaves the pillow is old but wise advice.
• Have sips of ice water as the urge to purge strikes. Many women say that this helps them keep meals down as well.
• Flat Sprite&reg is supposedly great at keeping the stomach from churning.
• Avoid foods and smells that seem to trigger nausea. Sometimes this will be nearly every food or every smell.
• Ginger, teas, cookies, even the spice can be helpful in preventing nausea.
• Acupressure bands can be worn like bracelets and can curb nausea while you wear them. But be forewarned as one mom says, stand next to a bucket when you take them off!
• Smaller frequent meals can also help keep an ailing belly at bay.
• Peppermint, either smelling it in aromatherapy form or sipping the tea can help curb nausea. It's also known to help with sagging energy levels.
• Try peanut butter or other protein snack before rising from your bed.
• A teaspoon of cider vinegar in a cup of warm water has been said to be effective.
• Take a deep breath. It might be mind over matter sometimes.
• Comfort foods! Eat what you can, if it stays down it is probably a good thing. Slowly add more foods to your diet as possible.
• Sleep to avoid nausea. Hey, don't knock it until you've tried it.
• One mom swears by cold veggies soaking in water to help relieve the churning feeling.
• When possible avoid hunger, it can also make your stomach upset.