Morning Sickness is a Good Thing

Posted on Jan 28, 2013 | About Morning Sickness Category | | Print This Article

Morning sickness can start almost as soon as you’re pregnant. For many women, the nausea and vomiting of morning sickness is the first physical sign that they’re pregnant.

In most cases, morning sickness starts around week six and lasts until the middle of the second trimester. In some cases, it lasts throughout the pregnancy. Despite its name, it can strike at any time of day or night, with or without an obvious trigger (other than the baby inside).

So, what could possibly be good about waking up to the need to hurl every morning or needing to make a mad dash to the bathroom to toss your cookies on short notice? Your doctor will likely tell you that there’s lots that’s good about it. For starters:

• Morning sickness is a sign that your pregnancy is progressing normally. As many as 75% of women experience morning sickness while they are pregnant.
• Morning sickness is a sign that your placenta is properly developing. That wonderful organ that keeps baby snug and warm in your tummy unfortunately causes quite a stir inside as it’s developing.
• Morning sickness may help protect your baby from toxins. Many believe that your body rejects foods which contain toxins which may be harmful to your baby.
• Morning sickness is linked to lower instances of miscarriage.
• Morning sickness is linked to decreased risk of heart problems for baby.
• Morning sickness has been linked to higher IQs in babies. This doesn’t mean that your baby will drop out of high school if you’re not throwing up in the morning, but studies have linked morning sickness during pregnancy to higher IQs and better vocalization later in childhood.
• Morning sickness limits your physical activity. You may be saying, “Wait, that’s not a good thing,” but many believe that the limits which morning sickness imposes helps keep your physical activity within levels which are safe for your developing baby.

Morning sickness may be a good sign that your pregnancy is progressing and you have a healthy baby inside of you,  but too much of a good thing may not be a good thing. If you have severe morning sickness which prevents you for eating for more than one entire day, if you are losing weight during pregnancy, or if you are experiencing dry heaves on a regular basis, contact your doctor to discuss the possibility that you may a more serious form of morning sickness known as hyperemesis gravidarum.

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