Pregnancy and heartburn
Categories: Just for moms, Pregnancy & birth, Eating & nutrition, Mommy musts, Home remedies, Resources
Many of us will face the multitude of pregnancy ups and downs. During our first trimester we may be nauseous day and night, leading us to wonder why they call it morning sickness. We may swell in places we never dreamed could get any bigger. Our boobs--well, let's not even get into those. As for diet, there may be some things we can't be near and some things we can't live without. And then there's the heartburn.
My mother had heartburn the entire time she was pregnant with me. I got it--bad--in the third trimester of my first pregnancy. This go around, I've had it nearly the entire time. What causes it? Well, there's a baby in there vying for space with everything else. That could be it. It could also be hormones. Progesterone, a hormone that pumps up during pregnancy, relaxes the muscles in the uterus and allows gastric acid to seep up. According to one pal--who turned out to be right, at least in one instance with the birth of my son--heartburn means the unborn baby has a full head of hair.
How to treat heartburn while pregnant? That, luckily, is not so tough. Some of us had better be prepared to buy stock in Tums, which are recommended by OBGYNs. The modern version comes in a variety of fruit flavors and tastes less chalky than its predecessor and even offers a bit of calcium, which is extremely important for pregnant women to get. Another pal suggested apple cider vinegar as perhaps a healthier alternative to the Tums. While this method could work fine for non-preggies, pregnant women are advised against consuming cider. It has also been recommended to drink plenty of water and to imbibe milk when heartburn strikes. The other remedy? Have the baby!
Pic by pixthree.
Recent Posts
- Weekend Fun and Games (7/03/2009)
- Kids and Extracurriculars - When Do You Let Them Quit? (7/03/2009)
- Twitter Follow Friday on ParentDish! (7/03/2009)
- Lush Lashes (7/03/2009)
- Abigail Breslin Makes $13 a Week (7/03/2009)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
C 7-21-2008 @ 11:49AM
The HEARTBURN! I had it everyday, all day while I was expecting. Nothing seemed to work except for finally giving birth. The nurses thought I was nuts when they checked on me in the morning and asked how the night had been and the first thing I say was "NO HEARTBURN, YAY!". Maybe, they were expecting an answer concerning my new, precious, bundle of joy? :)
Reply
alikatt 7-21-2008 @ 12:27PM
My god, bread and water gave me heartburn. Milk made me throw up.............. The only cure was giving birth.
Judy 7-21-2008 @ 12:53PM
I had heartburn with my first (and had never had it before in my life), but it was mild and tolerable. With my second, though, it was unbearable. Drinking water - WATER - made it worse. I tried eliminating different foods - nothing spicy, no chocolate, whatever anyone suggested - and nothing worked. Ginger would help briefly, and then I discovered that as long as I was sucking on a peppermint, I didn't feel the heartburn. I went through BAGS of peppermints, and it's probably part of the reason I need some fillings in my teeth now.
My third? Some heartburn, but pretty mild.
The old wives' tale about heartburn and hairy babies? My second had TONS of hair - we're talking Suri Cruise hair - and the heartburn was the worst, my first had lots of hair, and heartburn second worse, my third very mild and the least hair. It certainly held true for me.
Reply
Maureen 7-21-2008 @ 1:00PM
This brings back bad memories. Nothing helped my heartburn in the third trimester. It was so much worse than actually going into labor and I think I got more sleep after the baby was born than I did those last weeks of my pregnancies.
Water was evil and tums did squat.
The bonus... I didn't gain much weight because I could barely eat:)
Reply
brokemom 7-22-2008 @ 9:55PM
Never before did I have to make monthly trips to Costco for Tums...
Reply