6 weeks pregnant and having trouble eating regular foods?

Question

My wife is about six weeks pregnant is getting hit pretty hard with morning sickness and food aversions. She says most food smells like "it's rotting". So she's been falling back to mostly carbs since that's all she can get down without her stomach turning. I'm getting a little worried as proper nutrition is really important in these first few weeks.

She's been trying some home remedies (ginger-ale, tea, etc.) to settle her stomach and eat. Medicine that her doctor prescribed isn't covered by our insurance.

I'm afraid she still isn't eating enough or getting enough variety in her diet. Are there any liquid food alternatives that are safe for pregnant women that might be bland enough for her to get down to supplement the little she's already getting? If only temporarily until the morning sickness passes?

Answer 1

I'm getting a little worried as proper nutrition is really important in these first few weeks.

No, not really. Folic acid is important but she is probably getting that already. Otherwise - it's very early in the pregnancy and your wife can easily feed the baby from her reserves. So I really wouldn't be too worried about vitamins as long as she eats enough.

There is no general advise here, you have to experiment. If she doesn't want the usual food then there is probably a reason to it. Vegetables in particular can be really problematic. But at least my wife always had some food that she really wanted to eat during pregnancy, so maybe you can try that - no matter how crazy. In my opinion, liquid food would be an overreaction and could do more harm than good.

The sickness should get less in a few weeks anyway. But a change of diet is normal and will usually stay for the entire pregnancy, the organism is reacting differently to food in order to protect the child. When consulting with doctors please keep in mind that their general tendency is "better safe than sorry" - if you are overreacting already they might make it worse.

Answer 2

Morning sickness is very common in early pregnancy, this can last from weeks to months. It is often smell associated

Few remedies:

• Eat something before getting out from bed.

• If pregnant women's tummy is empty, stomach acids feast on stomach lining, causing nausea. Eat small amounts throughout the day to avoid becoming too full, or too hungry.

• Hydrate yourself, drink fluids throughout the day to avoid dehydration.

• Avoid spicy, greasy foods for dinner.

Suggested Meals

Cold foods (sandwiches, raw vegetables, salad when properly prepared to prevent listeria) Bland foods (chicken soup, broth, plain baked potato) Plain vegetables or fruits Keep meals small, but eat as frequently as you need.

Suggested Snacks to Eat

Lemons (Eat them, suck on them, or sniff them.) Ginger (ginger ale soda, ginger tea, ginger jam on toast, ginger snaps) Peppermint tea Crackers Jell-O Flavored popsicles Pretzels Vitamin B6: Taking Vitamin B6 (50 mg) daily has been shown to help with pregnancy-induced nausea.

Though ginger and raspberry are said to relieve morning sickness, there are few limitations one should know.

Webmd says:

Ginger -- in tea, candied, or in capsules -- can be effective in fighting nausea. Don't exceed more than 1,000 mg of ginger a day.

Raspberry tea has been used by many pregnant women to ease morning sickness; there is currently some debate about its safety, however, so don't drink this without speaking to your physician first.

Some medicines prescribed by doctors also help in relieving morning sickness, if medicines suggested by your doctor is not covering under your insurance, try to let him know about this, he may change the medicine.

Source: http://americanpregnancy.org/pregnancy-health/morning-sickness-relief/ http://www.webmd.com/baby/features/morning-sickness-misery

Answer 3

Calories and other storable nutrients are not really that important at that stage of the pregnancy, although my wife and most women I know reported that getting some protein first thing in the morning helped. Folic acid is important at that stage, so your wife might want to take appropriate supplements.