5 Things You Need to Know About Morning Sickness

1. The Name Lies

Doctors call it morning sickness, but if you have a bad case of it, you could throw up all day and all night. Morning sickness got its name because the morning is when most pregnant women feel the most nauseous. Morning sickness is not at all harmful to your growing baby, but it's guaranteed to make you feel horrible at times. Approximately three out of four pregnant women experience morning sickness, but that doesn't necessarily mean they all vomit. Frequent nausea is the most common symptom of morning sickness.

2. Changing Your Eating Habits Could be a Cure

When you feel sick to your stomach, eating is the last thing you want to do. However, that helps most women overcome their morning sickness and make it through the day. Instead of eating three large meals, eat five or six small meals every day. Keep soda crackers by your bed in the morning and snack on them about 15 minutes before you get out of bed. Ginger, lemonade, watermelon and potato chips (believe it or not) all help settle your stomach and relieve nausea. Avoid triggers like spicy foods and strong smells and, no matter what, don't skip a meal.

3. Hang On: It's Almost Over

Morning sickness peaks about the time you're 10 to 12 weeks pregnant. For those unlucky few who felt morning sickness symptoms as early as four weeks, it might seem like it will never end. However, most pregnant women feel complete relief after the first trimester, somewhere around 14 weeks. Your hormones are still raging, so certain smells and foods can still set you off for the rest of your pregnancy. However, those instances should be few and far between and you should be able to go about your daily activities without the nuisance of nausea.

4. When You Can't Take it Anymore

If you throw up everything, including fluids, for 24 hours, you need to call your doctor. It's possible you have hyperemesis gravidarum, which is the medical term for excessive vomiting during pregnancy. IV fluids and anti-nausea medications help you get back on your feet, although you might have to stay in the hospital for a few days if you're dehydrated. In rare cases, this condition can be serious, so it's important to contact your doctor as soon as possible if you have any questions or concerns.

5. You Still Have to Wait for the Ultrasound

Despite news reports that say morning sickness is worse when a woman is pregnant with a girl, there's no real scientific evidence to back that up. Thousands of women who experienced severe morning sickness went on to have healthy boys. You'll have your ultrasound soon enough and then you can tell the gender of the baby. Besides, even if morning sickness was an accurate gender predictor, you wouldn't feel up to buying those pink onesies anyway.