Morning Sickness: When To Be Concerned

One of the most common questions in early pregnancy taking care of patients suffering from nausea and vomiting . . . they’re really worried about the couple of pounds they may have lost because of not being able to get the dietary intake they are used to. We all want to reassure our patients that, yes we all think it’s important to follow that weight loss; if it becomes extreme we are going to go down that path and investigate it, however losing a couple of pounds here and there in the first trimester during this period of nausea and vomiting is usually very well tolerated and it’s okay. To impart that to mom, your body is going to do everything it can to support that pregnancy even if it’s at your cost. So, even if you’ve lost a couple of pounds, your baby is going to be okay. We’re going to get you through this and a little bit down the road things are going to feel so much better.

When their nausea and vomiting are worse, sometimes they are not able to tolerate a regular pre-natal vitamin which can be distressing for new moms who are trying to best they can for their new baby. It adds to the worry when they can’t get that prenatal vitamin down. One of the options we’ve found as an alternative is finding a children’s vitamin, often a chewable one or a gummy vitamin, look at the back and make sure you are getting at least 800 mg of folic acid. Usually taking two children’s vitamins – either chewable or gummy -- is a good temporary substitute until we can get you through that time period when the nausea and vomiting are better and we can get you back to your prescription prenatal vitamin that has the optimal nutrients in it for your pregnancy.