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Vitamins

Vitamin B6 aids liver metabolism. The active metabolic form is the pyridoxine precursor, pyridoxal-5-phosphate (P5P), because it enters directly into the functioning metabolic cycle. Usually, supplementing 25–50 mg. of B6 three times daily will help reduce the symptoms of morning sickness. Occasionally, higher amounts are needed. If these higher levels are used, it is wise to continue smaller amounts for a while to prevent pyridoxine withdrawal in mother or baby; higher dosages, however, are usually not required all the way up to delivery time, because intestinal symptoms decrease after the first few months. Other supplements helpful in morning sickness include vitamins B12, C, and E and extra magnesium and potassium.

(Excerpt from Nutritional Programs for Pregnancy by Elson M. Haas, M.D.)

Vitamin K and vitamin C, taken together, may provide remarkable relief of symptoms for some women. In one study, women who took 5 mg of vitamin K and 25 mg of vitamin C per day reported the complete disappearance of morning sickness within three days; however, most nutritionally oriented doctors use higher amounts of vitamin C (500–1,000 mg).

(Merkel RL. The use of menadione bisulfite and ascorbic acid in the treatment of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology 1952; 64:416–18.)

 

More on Vitamins by Dr. Jonathan Wright

Dr. Jonathan V. Wright is internationally known for his work in nutrition and preventive medicine. He is widely published around the world and has written many books and articles. He has been in practice and research for over 25 years. He is currently the Medical Director of the Tahoma Clinic.

If you have morning sickness or outright nausea and vomiting with your pregnancy and you'd rather not, there are a number of things you can do which will almost always control and most frequently eliminate the problem. Both herbal and vitamin remedies can be used separately, or together.

At present, mainstream medicine has no standard treatment for nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. The last widely-prescribed drug for this purpose was the subject of numerous lawsuits concerning whether or not it caused birth defects. There have been no allegations that the remedies you'll read about here have caused any such problems.

Ginger, the same herb found in most kitchens, has been used in traditional medicine for centuries to eliminate morning sickness, nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. Though I usually recommend 500 milligrams of ginger, three to four times daily, considerably more has been taken in individual cases. In one reported case, a woman had spent most of her pregnancy in the hospital with severe nausea and vomiting. She had equally severe symptoms during the flat half of her second pregnancy, but then stated taking ginger in 500 milligram capsules, up to 20 a day, just "to keep ahead of that queasy feeling". Her symptoms were totally controlled for the rest of this pregnancy and for her next two pregnancies.

Vitamins K and C, taken at the same time, can also give remarkable relief of pregnancy nausea and vomiting. Timing of these two remedies is important: they should be taken at the same time of day. I usually recommend 5 milligrams of vitamin K and 500 milligrams of vitamin C, once daily. This combination usually becomes effective in two to three days and can often be discontinued after several weeks treatment without return of symptoms.

When nausea and vomiting are so severe that nothing including vitamins and herbals will stay down, vitamins K and C can be injected either intramuscularly or intravenously until symptoms are sufficiently controlled.

Vitamin B, is another often-effective remedy in the control of pregnancy nausea. I usually recommend quantities ranging from 50 milligrams daily to 100 milligrams three times daily. In those very severe cases when injections are needed, vitamin B can be added to vitamins K and C for either intravenous or Intramuscular injection.

Whenever individual nutrients are taken, it's always advisable to use a general vitamin-mineral supplement as a "back-up". Of course, during pregnancy, a complete supplement is more important than ever. In addition, 1000 to 1500 milligrams of calcium, 500 to 750 milligrams magnesium, at least 30 milligrams of iron, 5 milligrams of folic acid and at least 1000 milligrams of vitamin C daily should a part of every pregnancy supplementation program, once morning sickness, nausea and vomiting subside.

Because of differences in age, Metabolic or potential allergy, these diet and supplement therapies may not be suitable for you. Consult a health care professional skilled in nutritional and natural therapies. To locate one near you, you might call the American College of Advancement in Medicine at 800-532-3688 or the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians at 206-323-7610.

Excerpted from: www.vitawise.com

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Updated on: Sep. 15, 2022

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