Do you feel bloated every afternoon when you are pregnant?

Women need to pay special attention to their body changes during pregnancy, especially in the early stages of pregnancy. Some women experience a bloated belly after pregnancy. Generally, this is caused by poor gastrointestinal digestion. It is best to treat it as soon as possible, otherwise it will cause serious physical harm to women in the middle and late stages of pregnancy. In daily life, you must eat small meals frequently, avoid eating too greasy food, and develop good living habits.

Causes of bloating in pregnant women

First, in the early stages of pregnancy, it is caused by changes in hormone secretion. At this time, the progesterone content in the pregnant woman's body increases, which weakens gastrointestinal motility and reduces gastric acid secretion, thus hindering digestive activity. For most pregnant women, bloating is most severe during the first three months of pregnancy, and will gradually subside after this period. So this is a normal phenomenon and has no effect on the baby's health.

Secondly, in the middle and late stages of pregnancy, the uterus expands, pressing on the intestines, making it difficult for the intestines to move. If the pregnant woman already has gastrointestinal diseases, such as constipation, bloating, and poor motility, the bloating during pregnancy may last until about four or five months of pregnancy.

Finally, some improper dietary structures can also cause bloating in pregnant women, such as frequently eating gas-producing foods such as beans, starches, pasta, broccoli and carbonated drinks.

What to do if pregnant women have bloating

1. In terms of diet: drink more water and eat small meals frequently to avoid bloating. Experts believe that when you have bloating, your stomach is already very bloated, and if you eat a lot of food, it will bloat even more. Therefore, you can eat 6-8 meals a day and don't eat too much food at once. In addition, don’t think that liquid food is easy to digest and only eat liquid food. That is a big mistake, because liquid food is not easy for the stomach and intestines to digest. It is best to choose semi-solid foods high in vitamins, such as apples and pears. Drinking more water can promote bowel movements.

2. In terms of exercise: take regular walks and massage frequently to promote peristalsis. When bowel movements are poor, massage can help. Start from the upper right abdomen, move clockwise to the upper left abdomen, and then massage to the lower left abdomen. Remember not to massage the area where the uterus is located. The uterus is located in the center of the abdomen. Some expectant mothers, not understanding the location of the stomach and intestines, will massage the uterus, which will cause uterine contractions. Therefore, if a pregnant woman has bleeding or uterine contractions, she should stop massaging immediately.

The impact of flatulence during pregnancy on pregnant women

Progesterone makes bowel movements worse

The most obvious period of bloating in pregnant women usually occurs in the first trimester, which is the first 3 months of pregnancy. After pregnancy, the stomach's ability to excrete acid is poor, and the stomach acid is relatively high. In addition, when pregnancy just begins, that is, during the period from ovulation to pregnancy, the progesterone in the body gradually increases, and progesterone will make the intestinal peristalsis ability worse, and the excretion function will naturally be affected, and then symptoms of bloating and constipation will appear. Therefore, the main cause of bloating in the first trimester is changes in hormone secretion.

After entering the second trimester, the uterus slowly expands and will exceed the navel after 5 months of pregnancy. All the intestines will be squeezed to the top and left and right sides of the stomach. The entire space is occupied by the uterus, so it is easy to compress the large and small intestines, and the peristaltic ability will also deteriorate.

Symptoms gradually subsided after 34 weeks

The bloating in the late pregnancy is different from that in the early pregnancy. The early stage is caused by stomach bloating, poor intestinal motility, and intestinal bloating and pain. In the late pregnancy, the uterus expands and the baby begins to press on the upper abdomen, which is the upper gastrointestinal tract, including the stomach and duodenum. Therefore, before 34 weeks of pregnancy (when the uterus is expanding), eating too much or too greasy food will cause symptoms such as nausea and stomach pain; but from 34 to 36 weeks, the fetus will gradually descend, and the expectant mother will feel relieved.