Hope for Mothers: Treating Morning Sickness & Hyperemesis Gravidarum (Research)

Do you know 80% of pregnant women experience feeling sick (nausea) or vomiting during pregnancy? This is not uncommon with many pregnant women experiencing very bad nausea, morning sickness and vomiting, they might be sick many times a day and be unable to keep food or drink down, which can impact their daily lives. There are many women with Hyperemesis Gravidarum (HG) which is excessive nausea or vomiting and means women who have HG often need hospital treatment. It is reported that 1 in 3 women experience HG, this can impact the foetus hence many women needing intravenous fluids to prevent dehydration. A client of mine was hospitalised for 4 weeks and had to be off work for 13 weeks due to HG

Research in Hyperemesis Gravidarum (HG)

There may be good news on the horizon for pregnant women experiencing HG, a recent breakthrough involving scientists at the University of Cambridge and researchers in Scotland, the USA and Sri Lanka, found that the degree of sickness was related to the amount of hormone produced in the womb - and prior exposure. This hormone has been identified as GDF15 and some women have low levels of GF15 in their non pregnant state so this can affect them in their pregnant state as hormones rises rapidly during pregnancy.

What is the solution?

So what is the solution (here is a snippet of an article from the BBC), preventing the hormone from accessing its "highly specific receptor in the mother's brain" will "ultimately form the basis for an effective and safe way of treating this disorder," Prof Sir Stephen, director of the Medical Research Council metabolic diseases unit at the University of Cambridge, said.

For women like my client who suffered from HG or are suffering from HG this confirms what they already knew and I am glad that research is being done to identify reasons why and possible solutions.

There is still a lot more research to do and more care needs to be taken to how we approach women with morning sickness and also hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) with this severe complication.

Would like a positive birth experience? Are you looking for calm and continuous support during your pregnancy? Get in touch with me, your Joyful Doula.