Going through pregnancy will cause your body to experience many changes. Some of them may be positive, but many others may make you feel uncomfortable, and may also be quite unfamiliar to you. You might wonder if some things are happening as a result of the pregnancy, or if they are simply digestive problems you might experience normally. Every woman is different, but there are some common issues that come up frequently. Some of these include heartburn, constipation, abdominal cramping, diarrhea, and burping during pregnancy.
Even though some of these problems might be familiar to you from before your pregnancy, you might find them exaggerated. Your body undergoes a great many changes during the course of a pregnancy, and these changes alone can result in any number of digestive problems.
Constipation is one of the most common problems. When you become pregnant, your body adjusts to the fact that the fetus will require additional nutrients to grow. As a result, your digestive system slows down so the nutrients in the food you consume can be more readily absorbed. Water is also absorbed to a greater degree to increase blood flow to the fetus. The combination of these things can lead to problems with constipation.
Another common digestive problem is heartburn. There are a couple reasons why pregnant women are more likely to experience it. One is that increased production of the hormone progesterone makes the cardiac sphincter muscle between the stomach and esophagus relax, allowing food and gastric acid to get back in to the esophagus. Another is that the expansion of the uterus pushes on the stomach, forcing food and gastric acid back beyond the cardiac sphincter muscle.
Pregnant women also experience a variety of digestive problems that originate with the nausea of morning sickness. Nausea can lead to abdominal cramping and diarrhea. Because constipation is a common problem, focusing on getting rid of it can also cause an opposite effect, resulting in diarrhea. Simply put, your body chemistry changes quite radically during a pregnancy and you may find that food you have always eaten no longer agrees with you, while at the same time you experience cravings for things you never cared for before.
Yet another problem you might experience is excess gas, which can lead to flatulence, or burping during pregnancy. You may find that gas builds up much more readily than before, and that you are far more sensitive to gasproducing foods. While food is being digested too slowly, you may experience gas bubbles moving through your colon, or back up your esophagus. It is the air that escapes up the esophagus that causes burping during pregnancy.
While a number of health issues may arise during your pregnancy, be assured that all of those listed above are quite common, and can usually be dealt with relatively easily. Just focus on being as healthy as you can be, look forward to having your baby, and your body will go back to normal before you know it!
Even though some of these problems might be familiar to you from before your pregnancy, you might find them exaggerated. Your body undergoes a great many changes during the course of a pregnancy, and these changes alone can result in any number of digestive problems.
Constipation is one of the most common problems. When you become pregnant, your body adjusts to the fact that the fetus will require additional nutrients to grow. As a result, your digestive system slows down so the nutrients in the food you consume can be more readily absorbed. Water is also absorbed to a greater degree to increase blood flow to the fetus. The combination of these things can lead to problems with constipation.
Another common digestive problem is heartburn. There are a couple reasons why pregnant women are more likely to experience it. One is that increased production of the hormone progesterone makes the cardiac sphincter muscle between the stomach and esophagus relax, allowing food and gastric acid to get back in to the esophagus. Another is that the expansion of the uterus pushes on the stomach, forcing food and gastric acid back beyond the cardiac sphincter muscle.
Pregnant women also experience a variety of digestive problems that originate with the nausea of morning sickness. Nausea can lead to abdominal cramping and diarrhea. Because constipation is a common problem, focusing on getting rid of it can also cause an opposite effect, resulting in diarrhea. Simply put, your body chemistry changes quite radically during a pregnancy and you may find that food you have always eaten no longer agrees with you, while at the same time you experience cravings for things you never cared for before.
Yet another problem you might experience is excess gas, which can lead to flatulence, or burping during pregnancy. You may find that gas builds up much more readily than before, and that you are far more sensitive to gasproducing foods. While food is being digested too slowly, you may experience gas bubbles moving through your colon, or back up your esophagus. It is the air that escapes up the esophagus that causes burping during pregnancy.
While a number of health issues may arise during your pregnancy, be assured that all of those listed above are quite common, and can usually be dealt with relatively easily. Just focus on being as healthy as you can be, look forward to having your baby, and your body will go back to normal before you know it!