The nausea and vomiting experienced by mothers’ during pregnancy can feel awful.
But could it actually be a good thing?
Hello former babies, Lissette here for DNews.
Two thirds of all pregnant women report experiencing morning sickness in their first trimester.
It’s a common and sometimes debilitating phenomenon that causes vomiting and nausea.
But calling it morning sickness is actually a bit of a misnomer.
First, the nausea and vomiting can happen anytime, day or night - not just the morning.
And many scientists tell us it’s far from being a sickness - in fact, it’s more like
the opposite.
I know that sounds weird, but scientists have been looking into it for a while and although
morning sickness is still a bit of a mystery, there is growing research dating back to the
1970s that says this nausea and vomiting is good - for both moms and babies.
So how does that work?
Well, there are a few different factors involved.
But one of the biggest to keep in mind is that embryos are much more sensitive than
adults.
They’re tiny, at their largest only about ten centimeters in the first trimester; And
their bodies and brains are still developing so they’re more susceptible to small concentrations
of, well, anything.
Food included.
Many studies have found that certain foods are more strongly associated with morning
sickness than others.
This one conducted by researchers from the University of Liverpool found that across
21 different countries worldwide, nausea and vomiting rates were linked to consumption
of alcohol and meat.
And another study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology found
similar results - also naming meat - but adding strong tasting plants to the list.
It’s easy to see why mothers would be more likely to reject alcohol - we’ve all heard
of fetal alcohol syndrome - now known as fetal alcohol spectrum disorders.
But what about meat and veggies?
Wouldn’t those be good for a growing embryo?
Not really.
See adults can tolerate meat quite well - especially the way we cook it today - but evolutionarily,
meats contained a lot of pathogens and made people sick.
So it makes sense that women would have evolved to reject meat while pregnant to keep our
little ones safe.
And when it comes to veggies - many plants like broccoli and cabbage actually contain
small amounts of phytochemicals, which make them taste or smell bad to certain animals
and keep them from being eaten.
But, while they might keep rabbits away, humans can handle the tiny amounts of toxins found
in them; however, embryos’ tiny developing bodies and brains cannot.
They are much more vulnerable - especially in the first trimester, which also coincides
with a higher prevalence of morning sickness.
Together, these studies provide evidence that nausea and vomiting during pregnancy helps
protect the embryo by having the mother reject or expel foods that can cause harm.
In fact, researchers at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found that not
having any morning sickness is associated with increased risk of miscarriage.
But it’s not just helping to protect the embryo, this nausea and vomiting may also
be protecting the soon to be moms.
A study out of Harvard University, found that when pregnant, a woman’s immune system is
sort of turned down - the theory behind it being that this way her body won’t reject
the foreign genetic material of her embryo.
But the woman’s suppressed immune system also means that much like her little one,
she can’t as easily fight off harmful bacteria and pathogens that are found in some foods.
So the body will reject them.
Now, that’s not to say that vomiting and nausea is categorically good for pregnant
women- if it is extreme, women should definitely see a doctor - but, a little here and there
seems be our bodies way of telling us what’s good for us.
So many things can be bad for us when we’re in the womb.
But, what sort of things need to go right in order to get pregnant in the first place.
Julia has the scoop in her episode: How Hard is it to get pregnant?
Check it out.
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Thanks for watching.