Morning sickness

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Morning sickness

Morning sickness, also called nausea and vomiting of pregnancy (NVP), is a common pregnancy symptom. Nausea or vomiting can occur at any time of day.

- When it starts and ends: It usually begins around week 4 and ends by week 16. Some women have symptoms after 20 weeks, and about 10% persist after 22 weeks.
- How common: About 70–80% have some nausea or vomiting, and about 60% actually vomit. A more severe form, hyperemesis gravidarum, occurs in about 1.6% of pregnancies.
- Why it happens: The exact cause isn’t known, but changes in hormones such as human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) and estrogen are involved. Some theories suggest it may help protect the fetus from toxins in early pregnancy.
- Diagnosis: Based on symptoms after other possible causes are ruled out. Abdominal pain, fever, or headaches are not typical. Seek care for severe symptoms, dehydration, or if vomiting makes it hard to keep fluids down.
- Prevention and treatment: Taking prenatal vitamins before pregnancy may lower risk. For mild cases, a bland diet and staying hydrated are often enough. The first-line medicine is a combination of doxylamine (an antihistamine) and pyridoxine (vitamin B6). Other antiemetics may be used if needed. Ginger may help some people, but evidence is limited. In more severe cases, doctors may try steroids or provide feeding support. Acupressure or acupuncture and nausea bands have some supporting evidence. Very rarely, severe vomiting may require medical care or hospital treatment.
- Outlook: Most pregnancies have normal outcomes. Morning sickness usually improves by mid-pregnancy, though some may have symptoms longer.
- Important notes: If vomiting is severe, you’re unable to keep fluids down, you lose weight, or you have other worrying symptoms, contact a healthcare provider.