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I really want to eat in the early stages of pregnancy. Why there is severe hunger during early pregnancy and methods to satisfy it without harming the figure

Today on the women's site "Beautiful and Successful" we will talk about increased appetite during pregnancy and whether it is necessary to fight it. After all, if a pregnant body wants it, then it needs it? But on the other hand, a large weight gain is undesirable during pregnancy.

How to be and what to do if the appetite is increased during pregnancy?

Increased appetite in early pregnancy

A woman's appetite is greatly influenced by hormonal balance in the body. During pregnancy, little estrogen begins to be produced, but progesterone, the main hormone responsible for pregnancy, is produced more.

Literally from the first days, progesterone begins to affect the appetite during pregnancy - in most women, the appetite decreases in the early stages, and there are those who have an increased appetite in early pregnancy.

Why is this happening?

Hormones

It's all about progesterone. It is this hormone that begins to prepare the body for pregnancy.

  • Firstly, the uterus is “preparing” - its walls thicken, and the muscles relax so that a spontaneous miscarriage does not happen.
  • Secondly, there is an accumulation of subcutaneous fat - a “strategic reserve” in case a woman does not receive enough nutrients during pregnancy for the full development of the fetus. The pregnant woman begins to experience hunger and a constant desire to eat something.

Such changes in the body begin to occur literally from the first days of conception.

Note that each organism reacts differently to this. If some women from the first days experience a constant need for something, then others, on the contrary, do not want to eat anything.

One way or another, many women notice a change in their attitude to food literally from the first days, so reduced or increased appetite is a sign of pregnancy, which manifests itself in the early stages.

Emotional condition

Another reason why appetite increases during pregnancy is due to the fact that how the woman's psyche will react to pregnancy.

  • An unexpected pregnancy can be a real stress for a woman. Some are used to eating stress - hence the explanation for increased appetite, other women, on the contrary, react to the news with complete apathy for food - the appetite disappears.
  • In the same way, a woman can react to a desired pregnancy. For many women, pregnancy becomes a kind of access to food, an excuse: “Now you can eat everything that the body“ requires ”!” Especially prone to this are those women who, before pregnancy, suffered from excess weight and limited themselves in nutrition. “Now I am pregnant. I can. The body demands. Now I have the opportunity to eat whatever I want - it's for the unborn child! I’m giving birth, then I’ll take care of my figure! ” - This is how a woman calms herself and begins to eat everything that was previously included in the circle of prohibited foods.

Not all women suffer from increased appetite in the early stages, often the opposite is observed: a pregnant woman is also tormented by vomiting, and even thoughts about food can be disgusting.

Thus, two causes of both reduced and increased appetite during pregnancy can be distinguished:

  • Hormonal changes in the body;
  • Emotional state of a pregnant woman.

Appetite in the second and third trimester

As we have already figured out, decreased or increased appetite in the first trimester of pregnancy is more often associated with a change in the level of progesterone in the body of the expectant mother. When the production of progesterone has returned to normal, and the body has become accustomed to its new position, it can cause increased appetite in a pregnant woman in the second trimester and in the later stages. lack of nutrients necessary for the full development of the fetus.

This is not surprising, because the body begins to expend additional energy in order to bear a healthy child. Therefore, in the diet of the expectant mother, there must be foods rich in substances necessary for the growing body: proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins and fats.

If the body does not have enough of these substances, a woman will experience a constant feeling of hunger, and her appetite will constantly increase during pregnancy.

Why is appetite increased during pregnancy?

If during pregnancy you constantly want to eat, you need to understand the reasons for this. Draws most often on sweet, salty, sour, fatty and flour. What is the reason for this and how to eat right?

Why do you want sweets?

Insulin begins to be intensively produced in the body, and blood sugar levels decrease, so you often want sweets. After a pregnant woman's blood sugar level rises for a short time, and then drops sharply again. Again there is a feeling of hunger and again want to eat.

  • It is better to choose healthy sweets: marshmallows and marmalade, dried fruits, honey, you can have a little dark dark chocolate.
  • Often the desire to eat sweets arises from a lack of phosphorus and magnesium in the body. Cheese, spinach, broccoli, nuts, seeds (raw) will also help diversify your diet.

Why do you want salty and sour?

The fact that during pregnancy you want salty, progesterone is also to blame.

We have already said above that progesterone relaxes the muscles of the uterus. Because of this, the blood flow in the vessels worsens, the woman develops weakness. Salt, as we know, increases blood pressure, so the body begins to feel the need for it and "demand" to improve health.

In the first trimester, eating salty and sour is a natural need of the body, in the second trimester, when the progesterone level returns to normal, the desire to eat salty should go away by itself.

  • If a pregnant woman wants salt throughout her pregnancy, it means that there are not enough chlorides. Their body can draw from fish, seeds, nuts, milk.
  • Also, do not forget about enough water.

Why do you want fat?

A pregnant woman always wants to eat something fatty because of the changed blood sugar level. The body lacks fatty acids or vitamins of groups A, D, and fatty foods help stabilize sugar levels, as high-calorie foods break down more slowly.

  • Add vegetable oils to your diet: pumpkin, linseed, and sesame.

I want flour all the time

If the appetite is increased during pregnancy, then this indicates a lack of nitrogen in the body. You should not seize hunger with harmful carbohydrates: buns, cakes and cookies.

  • Be sure to include protein in the diet of a pregnant woman (meat, fish, legumes, etc.)
  • In order for the blood to begin to move through the vessels faster, and to want less flour during pregnancy, you need to intensify your physical activity: move more and engage in permitted sports.

How to overcome increased appetite during pregnancy?

How can you fight increased appetite during pregnancy with healthy food (as doctors advise), if after eating a bowl of salad after half an hour you want to eat again? The women's site site conducted a study of forums, where he found how future mothers coped with this problem. Here are a few secrets of the "experienced":

  • Kefir helped me. And toxicosis receded, and the feeling of hunger passed.
  • Zhor attacked at night. I hid crackers made in the oven under the pillow. Still better than eating sandwiches.
  • Dried fruits and nuts are what I quickly pop into my mouth when I feel the first urge to eat something.
  • I drink tea by the liter...
  • You need to drink vitamins! Just make sure that there is no iodine in them, otherwise the appetite during pregnancy will increase even more. I drank Vitrum, Zinkit and calcium gluconate. All this for the night.
  • I eat bran. Enough for 2-3 hours to satisfy hunger.
  • Before eating anything, I drank a glass of milk.

Also, do not forget about the basic rules of nutrition for a pregnant woman:

  • Switch to fractional meals.
  • You need to eat healthy food.
  • Follow the full menu.
  • Keep track of the amount of fluid you drink per day.

If you have excessive cravings for food and your appetite is constantly increased during pregnancy, consult your doctor about what to do. Do not forget also that hunger can be caused by boredom. You need to find something to do that will distract you from the desire to eat something.

What kind of symptoms do pregnant women not find in themselves: accumulation of gases (flatulence), cravings for salty and sweet, capriciousness, tearfulness, nausea and increased pigmentation. But thirst during pregnancy is not a sign of future motherhood.

However, it can become an integral part of his companion. This factor cannot be ignored, and first you need to find out the reasons for the increased need for fluid in the body.

Why do you always want to drink during pregnancy

Experts believe that there are two types of factors that cause intense thirst during pregnancy: chronic diseases and pathological conditions, as well as normal physiological processes:

  • it must be remembered that all metabolic processes and biochemical reactions in the body occur through fluid. During pregnancy, these phenomena become more frequent, the woman's body experiences increased stress and spends more energy. Hence the increased need for drinking;
  • due to the accelerated metabolism, the kidneys have to work in an enhanced mode “without days off”, it is not surprising that a woman is very thirsty during pregnancy, and a feeling of thirst accompanies her day and night;
  • against the background of a constant increase in the amount of amniotic fluid, the body of the expectant mother suffers significant moisture losses, so you have to drink a lot and often;
  • if a pregnant woman has undergone a change in taste preferences, and the amount of salty foods has increased in her diet, the body tries to remove excess salt. Naturally, you have to drink more water to make it easier for the kidneys to work;
  • due to the activation of the hematopoietic system, which prevents the formation of blood clots, the accumulation of fluid automatically increases in the vascular system, which is the cause of severe thirst during pregnancy.

Also, the need for water may arise due to some disease. For example, diabetes mellitus, viral infection, bronchial diseases or disorders of the gastrointestinal tract.

By the way, blood sugar levels in pregnant women are often elevated. If this fate befell you, you should consult with your doctor about the diet.

Sometimes a woman is constantly thirsty during pregnancy for a reason reduced hemoglobin. If you have anemia, it is not surprising that the body requires a lot of water.

There are situations when at a later date there are edema, but thirst during pregnancy only intensifies. It would seem that it is worth limiting fluid intake, but no - the body needs water even more than before. The fact is that an actively growing fetus takes a lot of protein from the mother, “eats” muscle mass.

To reduce swelling in this case and prevent blood clots, you can give up fast carbohydrates - pastries, sugar, sweets, instead increasing the intake of proteins and foods containing protein.

If you are constantly thirsty, especially at night, share your concerns with your doctor. Sometimes thirst signals such a serious illness as preeclampsia, so let the specialist for safety net prescribe additional tests.

As you can see, the reasons why you may be tormented by intense thirst during pregnancy are pretty clear. Now let's figure out what drinks you can satisfy it with.

Faithful helpers in the fight against thirst

Naturally, if you are very thirsty during pregnancy, then you need to fight thirst, and not endure it. Fortunately, the range of drinks is quite wide:

  1. Water. Of course, the first and most true is simple clean water. Not only does it best satisfy thirst, but there are no contraindications to it;
  2. Mineral. You need to be careful with this drink. It is better to refuse medicinal waters, but the dining room can be consumed within reasonable limits. In this case, it is better to choose mineral water without gas, so as not to burden the intestines. It is also worth paying attention to the composition and make sure that this water is mineralized in a natural way, and not by an artificial method;
  3. Juices. Of course, drinks made from fresh vegetables and fruits are good for expectant mothers and their babies. But you should approach the choice of juices with all responsibility, because their abuse is fraught with various complications. First of all, try to eliminate juices in packages or bottles from your diet. Product manufacturers often do not disdain sweeteners, flavors and preservatives. There will be no benefit from such a drink at all. Also note that exotic juices such as pineapple or mango are made from fruits that have undergone long-term transportation and storage, not always in favorable conditions. It is advisable to drink nectars of domestic production, grown in the CIS apples, cherries, plums, carrots. But it is best to drink a drink from freshly squeezed berries or fruits, prepared with your own hands. To do this, you need to choose on the market (but not in the supermarket) not too beautiful raw materials - in this, usually, there are no pesticides and nitrates. But do not forget that from sweet juices, thirst during pregnancy can only increase. Therefore, dilute them with water 1:1 and consume in moderation;
  4. Morses. Perfectly helps to cope with thirst fresh fruit drink from cranberries or lingonberries;
  5. Teas and decoctions. Both black and green teas contain significant amounts of caffeine, so they are on the list of questionable drinks for pregnant women. But if you can’t refuse them at all, choose varieties carefully, do not abuse additives that can cause allergies, and the strength of the drink. It is best to drink tea no more than 2 times a day, giving up sugar in favor of honey. And if possible, even switch to rosehip decoctions, dried fruit compote (uzvar), jelly, chamomile or mint tea.

For a pregnant woman in drinking, as in everything, moderation is important. Drink no more than two liters of fluid per day and be healthy!

We often hear that an expectant mother should eat for two. Some women do just that, and at the end of the term they suffer from swelling, hypertension, back pain, and other pathologies. Pregnant women often say that they constantly want to chew something, have a snack. What to do? Is it normal to feel constantly hungry and have an increased appetite during pregnancy? Why does it occur?

Causes of hunger during pregnancy

Hormonal restructuring of the body is the main factor that provokes a constant desire to eat. Changes lead to other new sensations and desires. For example, women passionately want to eat those dishes that they did not like before. There is also a desire to combine incongruous dishes: spicy and sweet, salty and sweet. Sometimes in winter, expectant mothers have a desire to eat melon, watermelon.

Gynecologists say that an increase in appetite and new taste habits are normal for expectant mothers. After all, the need for calories necessary for the development and growth of the fetus increases in them.

However, not the last place in the increase in appetite is the psychological factor. This refers to the belief that now you need to eat for two. Do not listen to such erroneous opinions. Gynecologists say that with the onset of pregnancy, a woman should increase the amount of food consumed, but only by 300 calories in the first or second trimester and by 450 in the third. But not twice!

Another reason for the constant feeling of hunger is that often accompanies women in position. Psychologists state that depressive states are characterized by a lack of the hormone of joy - serotonin. It is found in many sweet foods, in particular chocolate, cocoa. So a woman is trying to compensate for the lack of joy in life by consuming sweets or other favorite foods.

Feeling hungry in early pregnancy

It is at this stage of bearing a baby that expectant mothers begin to experience constant hunger. Some consider this to be normal and even demand that their husbands buy them various goodies. Others, constantly monitoring weight and observing its sharp increase, come to doctors with complaints that they cannot subdue their appetite and begin to suffer from. A competent obstetrician-gynecologist explains to his patient the cause of the problem, its possible consequences and gives practical advice.

The emerging feeling of constant hunger can be overcome if you listen to the advice of nutritionists. It is important to observe them, and not ignore them, justifying oneself with the mission of motherhood, with promises to correct the situation after childbirth. So you can only harm yourself and your unborn child. Edema, impaired kidney function, gestational, varicose veins - these are the problems that can be acquired in a few months of overeating.

So, to pacify the constant feeling of hunger, follow these rules:

  1. Eat small portions. For snacks, use biscuit or cereal cookies, fruits, carrots, low-fat yogurt.
  2. Eliminate white bread and pastries from your diet.
  3. Don't confuse thirst with hunger. If you have an urgent desire to eat, just drink a glass of water. Surely the feeling of hunger will recede. But never drink immediately after a meal. Limit food and drink at intervals of 40-60 minutes.
  4. Try to eat less acidic foods. They increase acidity, irritate the stomach and cause hunger.
  5. Make the most of your diet with seasonal fruits and vegetables. The fiber they contain is great for filling the stomach and satisfying hunger.
  6. Protein should be included in your daily diet. It helps to maintain a feeling of satiety for a long time. By the way, meat dishes are best steamed or stewed. Avoid fried meat.
  7. Calcium must be present in the daily diet. Its rich sources are fish, cottage cheese, yogurt, nuts.
  8. Never eat on the go. So the feeling of fullness will appear very quickly. You need to chew slowly, sitting at the table, not being distracted by TV, books, newspapers, talking on the phone.
  9. Find activities that interest you. After all, the feeling of constant hunger in women often appears from idleness.

Specially for

Usually, loss of appetite occurs in the first weeks of pregnancy, this is due to such a specific condition as toxicosis. They affect about 70% of pregnant women.

Symptoms of toxicosis:

  • nausea, especially in the morning;
  • gagging,
  • vomit,
  • drowsiness, weakness, irritability;
  • increased salivation,
  • aversion to smells that until recently were favorite or neutral.

It is obvious that in this state it is difficult to maintain a healthy appetite. Often pregnant women worry that they cannot give good nutrition to their baby. But you should not panic: if the weight loss is not more than 3-4 kg, and vomiting is not more than 5 times a day, then there is no threat to the health of the woman and the child.

With early toxicosis, one should try to eat the few foods that the body agrees to accept. Usually these are foods with a high salt content, since toxicosis dehydrates the body, creating a lack of mineral salts. Most often, pregnant women make up for this deficiency by drinking Essentuki-17 salty mineral water, tomato juice with salt, pickles, and salted fish. It is also good to drink acidified drinks such as cranberry juice, homemade lemonade, rosehip infusion. They will reduce the feeling of nausea and replenish the body with vitamins. Just avoid sweet industrial sodas, their composition is far from the principles of a healthy diet. In the morning, it is advisable to eat a light breakfast in the form of fruit or crackers right in bed, before getting up. This will ease the nausea and urge to vomit.

Sometimes toxicosis is accompanied not by a decrease, but by an increase in appetite. However, after eating, the condition worsens. Fractional nutrition will help to cope with this problem: in small portions, but more often.

Heartburn

Appetite may also decrease in the last weeks, shortly before childbirth. The reason for this is heartburn, which affects approximately 75% of pregnant women to some extent. It can occur after eating any food, including unsweetened tea and unsalted oatmeal. Heartburn in late pregnancy is not associated with chronic stomach problems, but with the pressure of the growing uterus on the internal organs and the influence of the hormone progesterone. This hormone relaxes all smooth muscles, including the sphincter that separates the stomach from the esophagus, and food moves back up the esophagus unhindered when the pregnant woman is in a horizontal position or tilted.

Appetite in this case is forced to decrease, due to fear of heartburn. To improve the condition, you need to use fractional meals, do not bend over and do not lie down earlier than 1-3 hours after eating. The specific time depends on the amount eaten. In severe cases, sleep in a semi-recumbent position saves.

Pregnant zhor

Toxicosis can last a couple of days or a couple of months, or it can completely bypass it. With good health, many pregnant women may constantly want to eat. For some, a sharp increase in appetite is the first sign that they are pregnant. At the same time, taste preferences can remain the same, or they can completely change.

A strong appetite is not a problem, because the growth of the placenta and fetus, an increase in blood volume by an average of 1.5 liters require building material. But of course, you should not eat kilos of cakes or sit on a “diet” of Olivier. As always, you need to monitor the composition of food. The menu should have the correct ratio of proteins, fats and carbohydrates:

  • 30% proteins,
  • 20% fat,
  • 50% carbohydrates.

To achieve this ratio of elements, you need to eat lean meat, fish, eggs, dairy products, fresh vegetables and fruits, whole grain cereals, cereal bread.

Malnutrition

Sometimes pregnant women severely restrict themselves in nutrition due to fear of "losing their figure." This is not to say that their fears are completely groundless. But you need to know that overeating during pregnancy is less dangerous than undereating.

Research by scientists from the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences found that pregnant women with body weight below the norm are 3-4 times more likely to have health problems than expectant mothers with normal weight. Children with hypoxia and underweight are born 2 times more often in low-weight pregnant women. The norm is considered to be a weight of 60-65 kg with a height of 165 cm.

A rational diet will help to avoid these problems. The development of this diet was dedicated to the life of a doctor from the USA, Tom Brewer. He found that malnutrition leads to severe pregnancy, preeclampsia and sometimes causes premature birth.

Protein is the most important part of a pregnant woman's diet.

Protein deficiency manifests itself in:

  • elevated hemoglobin - above 120 g / l - in the second and third trimesters, which indicates a thickening of the blood;
  • an increase in blood pressure due to a decrease in blood volume,
  • delayed intrauterine development of the child, malnutrition;
  • an increase in liver enzymes, indicating poor liver function;
  • pre-eclampsia and eclampsia are serious conditions that are expressed in headaches, visual impairment, convulsions and can lead to coma.

As you can see, the consequences of protein deficiency are very serious. However, the peculiarity of protein digestion is that without a sufficient amount of carbohydrates, they will not be used to build tissues, but will be spent on energy. Therefore, carbohydrates in the menu are also very important.

As for fats, they, like carbohydrates, are a source of energy. In addition, fats supply fat-soluble vitamins to the body, are part of cell membranes and are necessary for the intrauterine development of the child's brain and organs of vision.

A normal increase in the seventh month of pregnancy is 2.3-4.5 kg. If your numbers are less than this value, it is worth revising the menu in the direction of increasing nutritional value. This way you can prevent serious problems for you and your baby.

Pregnancy is a natural physiological state of the female body, during which serious hormonal and biological changes occur. Changes in the work of the endocrine glands, metabolism. The body begins to create the conditions necessary for carrying a pregnancy and giving birth to a child.

Each woman is special and the signs of pregnancy in each appear individually. For some, they are quite obvious, while for others they may be absent altogether. If you suspect you might be pregnant, listen to your body. There are common true symptoms and sensations of the onset of conception. Do not know what are the signs of pregnancy in early pregnancy? Let's look at the most basic of them:

Delay next menstruation

This sign is considered the main one for women with a regular menstrual cycle. If the expected period did not come within 5-6 days, then most likely you are pregnant.

Feelings of nausea

From the second week of conception, nausea appears. This feeling is especially pronounced in the morning, and sometimes it can be quite nauseous, up to vomiting. This is the main sign of early toxicosis of pregnant women. But the female body can react to pregnancy in different ways. Some do not feel toxicosis for the entire period, while others suffer from nausea and vomiting from the first days until the very birth.

Smells

Many women from the first weeks of pregnancy acquire an incredible ability to capture odors. Previously pleasant scents can become extremely nasty and favorite perfumes, cosmetics, without regret end up in the trash can. Almost all pregnant women react very negatively to tobacco smoke, even if they have previously smoked themselves.

Strange Appetite

If there is a strong toxicosis, because of nausea and vomiting, the appetite may disappear completely. Or, on the contrary, you want to eat constantly, day and night. Then the expectant mother begins to eat everything, not paying attention to the combination of products. For example, he eats salted herring with pleasure, drinking milk, and after an impressive piece of cake, pickles from a jar are used. This is also a sign of pregnancy.

When pregnancy occurs, especially in the early stages, there is a well-known craving for salty foods. This is a consequence of the fact that the body began to experience a lack of vitamins. If you really want salted cucumbers, then you don’t have enough vitamin C. If you want to drink beer unbearably, you don’t have enough vitamins of group B. Also, one of the indicators that conception has come is the desire to eat those foods that you couldn’t stand before.

Frequent urination

With the onset of pregnancy, there may be frequent urge to go to the toilet. This is due to the fact that the uterus increases in size and presses on the bladder. Therefore, very often you want to run to the toilet "in a small way."

Breast enlargement

This sign is one of the most revealing. In the first or second week after conception, the breasts enlarge, the mammary glands swell, and the nipples become extremely sensitive even to light touches. Soon there will be a pronounced pigmentation of the nipples.

Drowsiness and weakness

Everything seems to be in order. The mood is good, the work pleases, there is no depression, a deep, full sleep comes at night. But for some reason, the forces go somewhere, they become less and less, especially in the evening. Some women even faint. These ailments are a characteristic sign of the onset of pregnancy.

mood swings

Very often there is unmotivated irritation. Moreover, everything irritates - the actions of colleagues, the words of a loved one. But in just a couple of minutes, the mood changes radically. Just now you were crying over the scene of the popular series, but now the same characters in the same scene cause unbridled laughter. You yourself have just provoked a violent quarrel with your loved ones, but after five minutes you kiss them, shedding tears of joy. Such changes are very noticeable to others and they have the idea that “something is wrong” with you.

However, all of the listed signs cannot be 100% symptoms of the onset of conception. The mood doesn't have to change at all. Changes in taste preferences also do not appear in everyone. In the early stages, you may not feel any changes in the body at all. That is, all this classic set of characteristic features may not appear at all.

One of the most popular and reliable ways to determine pregnancy at a short time is the biochemical method. The hormone secreted by the fetus - chorionic gonadotropin is easy to determine in the urine of a pregnant woman using an express test. Special tests can be bought at a pharmacy. They differ only in price, but the quality is almost the same for all.

A gynecologist will help you make a confident diagnosis. Therefore, if the next menstruation does not come, go to the antenatal clinic for an appointment with a specialist. Ultrasound examination (ultrasound) will help to accurately determine the onset of pregnancy. This examination must be carried out without fail at the slightest suspicion. It is this procedure that will help eliminate the likelihood of an ectopic pregnancy, which may be accompanied by exactly the same symptoms.