Morning sickness has long been an annoying, unwanted, but expected rite of passage into motherhood. Its causes are not totally understood, although there is professional consensus regarding certain predictable symptoms. Medical researchers have developed medicines for the serious and fortunately rare life threatening forms, but the average mother-to-be must continue to rely upon home remedies that have been used by women since ancient times.
While it is not suggested that women of today follow the regimen of pregnant women in ancient Rome, it is interesting to note that physicians of the day recommend soft bland foods like soft boiled eggs, and lots of rest to alleviate morning sickness symptoms. Those recommendations sound prudent even today. Some of the more recent home cures for the nausea which defines morning sickness are given below. Some have been used since our medieval past, while others have been more recently discovered.
• Vitamin B6 has been shown to help relieve morning sickness symptoms. It is readily available at your local drug store. A daily dose of 50 milligrams is recommended. If you don't like the idea of taking your vitamins in pill form, lollipops and herbal teas are available that are enriched with vitamin B6.
• Avoid the three big meals a day. Eat small amounts frequently throughout the day. Give in to your cravings - your body seems to know what it needs. Keep high protein snacks available; nuts, eggs, and beans are great.
• Don't eat spicy or cold foods. Both seem to greatly annoy a sensitive stomach, and spicy foods are good at causing heartburn.
• Get a good night's sleep, and nap whenever you can, but not right after eating. When you get out of bed in the morning, take it slow. It's a good idea to keep Saltine crackers by the bed and eat a few before you get up to absorb stomach acid.
• Try to avoid cooking odors. Open windows when cooking. Use the microwave where possible to reduce cooking odors.
• Take ginger, either in capsule form, in ginger ale, or in ginger tea. It helps to settle the stomach.
Of course each pregnancy is unique, as is the physical, chemical, and psychological makeup of each mother-to-be. All of the above home remedies will not work for every woman, but if only a few help relieve symptoms it will be a minor blessing.
Remember that these home remedies apply only to women who are experiencing moderate or normally expected morning sickness symptoms. If you have severe symptoms, and cannot hold down food or liquids for a period of more than 24 hours, call you physician to be sure that you do not have a more serious condition that could lead to dehydration, which could be harmful to both you and the baby.
For most women, the symptoms of morning sickness, including the nausea, will stop before the end of the first trimester. After it ends, the time will fly by until you bring that beautiful healthy baby into your life. Morning sickness will be no more than memorable experience that you will someday smile about in later years when you listen to the complaints of the next generation's mothers-to-be.
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