Morning Sickness and How To Cure It

February 18, 2010 by Shruthi  
Filed under Pregnancy Tips

Morning sickness is usually the first sign that you’re pregnant.  Having this symptom can occur as early as 2 weeks after conception.  Morning sickness does not only happen in the morning, but it also can happen in the afternoon or at night.  An empty stomach is usually the culprit for morning sickness and this is a common time for it to appear.

Morning sickness is something that most pregnant woman experience, but at different level.  It can be a feeling of mild nausea to the more serious where you are unable to keep any food or liquids down.  The severity of the effects seems to happen more to women who has a history of migraine or travel sickness.

The exact causes for morning sickness is not known, but most doctors agree that the changes in hormone levels is the leading factor.  One of the effects of these hormones is to change the way your digestive system works, which can lead to higher level of acid in the stomach.

Another cause that could lead to morning sickness is heightened sense of small and taste while pregnant.  This can actually make nausea feel even worse when there’s strong odors present.  Some women are able to stand it while others can’t.

Morning sickness can occur over the whole length of the pregnancy, but most women tend to find out morning sickness disappears by the 14 weeks as the hormone in the body stabilize.

To help prevent morning sickness, try to snacking on something on fruits and vegetables throughout the day.  At night, keep a couple biscuits next to your bed if wake up during the night.

Another way to help prevent morning sickness is making ginger drinks.  Ginger are known to have properties that calm the stomach.

Morning sickness is a natural part of pregnancy and it won’t harm your body or your baby in any way.  As long as you eat a healthy diet and keep your stomach with full with food at all time, you will have a lesser chance of having morning sickness.

Pregnancy Massage Therapy

February 18, 2010 by Shruthi  
Filed under Massage Therapy, Pregnancy Tips

When you’re pregnant, your body is being under a lot of pressure.  Your whole body will hurt, from your feet to your head.  Because of this, many pregnant women try to find ways to ease the tension and stress.  Some find relieve by medicine, while others just spend the whole day laying down.  Another way to help ease those pain in the body is massage therapy.  To meet the demands for this, there are many massage therapists today that specialize in prenatal massages.

Prenatal massage is different from traditional massage in the way of techniques used by the therapists.  The techniques they use will concentrate on a woman’s, neck, back and pelvic regions.  These are the parts that are under pressure all the time.  Another different in a prenatal massage is the position you will be in.  Since you can lay on your stomach, you will often be on your side or your back with pillows for support.  Some therapists have special tables that are designed just for pregnant women.

There are many benefits from massage during pregnancy.  When your body is under stress, your body will produce stress hormones.  These stress hormones does not only affect you, but also your baby.  The lesser stress you have, the healthier the baby will grow.

There are many massage therapists that specialize in prenatal care in your area.  While there are many massage therapists to choose from, you should choose one that you trust or have a good reputation.  You could try to ask your doctor if they recommend anyone or ask someone who had massage therapy already.

Massage during pregnancy is a good way to help relieve those stress and tension from your body.  The better you feel, the happier you and your growing baby will be.

What Food To Avoid During Pregnancy

February 18, 2010 by Shruthi  
Filed under Pregnancy Tips

When you are pregnant, you will need to take extra cautions when eating food.  Food is what gives the body energy and also provide nutrition to help the baby grow.  However, there are some food that shouldn’t be eaten during pregnancy.  By understanding what food to avoid, this will ensure you will have a healthy baby.  Below are some of the food to avoid during pregnancy.

Cheese

There are some cheeses that contain bacteria which can be harmful to a pregnant mother.  Avoid both pasteurized and unpasteurized soft cheeses  such as Brie, Camembert and Danish Blue. Also avoid cheeses coated in wax such as Post Salut and Gouda.

Cheeses that are safe to eat are hard cheeses such as Cheddar, Red Leicester, and Parmesan.  For the softer cheeses that are made from pasteurized milk, this includes Cottage cheese, mozzarella, and ricotta.

Seafood

Seafood such as oysters and anything raw from the sea should avoided.  Seafood that are safe to eat only when they are thoroughly cooked and hot are crab, prawns, and lobster.  If you like to eat tuna, try to eat only once a month due to the potential levels of mercury found in them.

Meat

Avoid any meat or poultry that are under cooked or raw.  If you do plan on eating them, make sure they are cooked thoroughly and the juices run clear.  In addition, when touching the meat or poultry, wash your hands thoroughly after handling them.

Above are some of the foods that should be avoided.  If you really want to eat it, make sure you understand the risk for eating them.  If in doubt, ask your doctor for advice.  The last thing you want to do is hurt your baby.

Preventing Back Pain With A Pillow During Pregnancy

February 18, 2010 by Shruthi  
Filed under Pregnancy Tips

When you are pregnant, there’s a lot of stress being put on your body.  The extra weight that your body is carrying will put a lot of discomfort around your back, hips, legs, and feet.  Sometimes, these area of the body will feel incredible pain and discomfort.  To ease those pain and help support the extra weight, a pregnancy pillow will help out a lot.  Pregnancy pillows can be used to sleep during the day or at night to provide extra comfort.

Pregnancy pillows differ from regular pillows in that they are designed to fit on certain parts of the body to add support.  There are several different types of pillows that are made to fit your lower back, on your neck, the stomach area, and between your thighs.

As you progress through the stages of pregnancy, you will begin to feel more discomfort as the weight of your baby increases.  It might get to the point that you will have a hard time sleeping because of the way you sleep.  As your get stomach gets bigger, it will be nearly impossible to lay straight on your back.  The only position is laying on your side.  Even laying on your side will get uncomfortable, but using a pregnancy pillow should help ease the pain around your hips area.

When laying on your side, put the pregnancy pillow between your knees and thighs and another behind your back.  The pillow between your legs gives support and relieves the pressure on your hips.  The pillow on your back will help you reposition easier when you want to.

If you sit for a long period of time, you should put the pregnancy pillow behind your back.  This will help support your back and prevent discomfort.  Some women feel relief by putting a pillow under their stomachs to support the extra weight.  These techniques can also be used when driving to prevent discomfort and stiffness.

There are many models of pregnancy pillows available.  They are also made of different materials such as down or cotton, and memory foam.  When shopping, take your time to feel each one and see if you like the feeling of it. Pregnancy is a time where you will feel a lot of discomfort, but using pregnancy pillows will help out a lot.

Eating Healthy During Your Pregnancy

February 18, 2010 by Shruthi  
Filed under Pregnancy Tips

Eating a well-balanced diet is important to your overall health, but it is even more important when you are pregnant.  Now that you have a baby growing inside, you want the baby to as healthy as possible.  What ever that you eat, your baby will eat that too.  The healthier you eat the better it’s for your pregnancy and you.

When you are pregnant, never miss a meal, especially breakfast.  Breakfast is the most important meal of the day because your baby hasn’t eat all night and now their hungry.  If you wait to long to eat, you may begin to feel sick.  This feeling is a way the body is telling you to eat.

Make sure you are getting enough food to eat daily.  The foods should be rich in vitamins and minerals.  These are vital things that the baby needs to grow. Foods that are rich in vitamins and minerals are vegetables and fruits.  In addition, try to eat dairy products and whole grain.  These foods not only help the baby grow, but it will give you a lot of energy.

When you are pregnant, you will crave more for food than when you weren’t pregnant.  What ever that you crave for, you should eat it, but be caution when eating junk food and foods that contains a lot of fats.  There’s nothing wrong with eating a lot of food when you’re pregnant.  The more you eat the more nutrition you are giving to your baby.  The weight you gain during pregnancy can be taken off with exercising.

Eating healthy also include drinking plenty of water throughout the day.  You’ll need lots of water to prevent dehydration.  You can drink water or juice.  Try to stay away from pop and beverages that contains a lot of sugar and caffeine.

When you eat healthy food, you are ensuring a successfully pregnancy and a healthy baby.  There are a lot of healthy foods to eat so you should eat as much as you can.  Your baby will thank you later.

Exercise During Pregnancy

February 16, 2010 by Shruthi  
Filed under Pregnancy Tips

Being pregnant doesn’t mean you have to lay in bed all day.  Back in the old days, pregnant women were considered to be fragile and shouldn’t do anything except lay in bed.  While it’s true laying in bed will help relieve the pain and discomfort that is associated with pregnancy, but you can exercise too.  Exercising will help make you feel better and help the body stay in shape.  If you feel better, your baby will feel good too.

Before you start to do any exercising, make sure to get an approval from your doctor first.  If you are given the approval to exercise, your doctor may give you some guidelines to follow to ensure a healthy pregnancy.

When you’re pregnant, everything you do, you’ll need to be caution about it.  You should avoid any exercise that is too strenuous such as lifting heavy weight, mountain biking, and downhill skiing.  Other exercises such as jogging, running, and power walking should be avoided as well.

The most appropriate exercise during pregnancy pregnancy should be something that don’t put too much stress on your body.  Some of these exercise includes prenatal yoga, walking, and swimming.  These exercises let you go at your own pace and don’t put a lot of stress on your body.

You should try to exercise everyday as it will be good for you and your baby.  In addition, it helps alleviate aches and pains, depression, and fatigue, which is all common in pregnancy.  As long as you exercise properly, you shouldn’t need to worry about any injury happening.  The more you exercise, the healthier your baby will be.