Morning Sickness
Nausea during early pregnancy is called morning sickness. However, it can happen any time of the day and often occurs between the 6th and 13th weeks of pregnancy. If you were in good health before pregnancy, it is unlikely that your baby will be affected by morning sickness and should be healthy.
If you have morning sickness:
- Rest often and take frequent naps
- Eat small meals often and avoid an empty stomach. Keep dry toast, crackers, biscuits or dry cereal with you to snack on. It may help to eat first thing in the morning.
- Drink liquids between meals, but avoid drinking during meals.
- Take sips of liquids such as soft drinks, or fruit juice when vomiting occurs. As the nausea eases, increase liquids to 120 milliliters every hour.
- Avoid greasy or spicy and rich foods.
- Keep notes about your vomiting. Note when it occurs and anything that makes it worse, such as certain foods, odors, activities or stress. You may wish to share this information with your doctor.
Call your doctor right away if you:
- Are unable to keep food or drink down for 24 hours.
- Have stomach pain, fever, dizziness, severe weakness or feel faint.
- Have weight loss of more than 2 to 5 kilograms.
- Have very dark yellow urine or do not urinate for long periods. These are signs that your body is dehydrated. This can be harmful for both you and your baby if untreated. An IV (intravenous) with fluids and nutrients may need to be given. Your doctor may also suggest over the counter or prescription medicines.
Talk to your doctor or nurse if you have any questions or concerns.
