Diarrhoea During Pregnancy: What You Need To Know

All discomforts during pregnancy can be mild or uncomfortable, depending on how each woman’s body responds. One common discomfort is a sluggish digestive system, diarrhoea, especially as you approach the end of your pregnancy.

Medically, diarrhea occurs when fluid can’t be absorbed from the contents of your bowel, or when extra fluid is secreted into your bowel. This causes your bowel movements to become loose and watery. Diarrhea is usually defined as 3 or more loose bowel movements in a 24 hour period.

Diarrhea during pregnancy, does not necessarily mean it is caused by your pregnancy. Food poisoning, stomach flu, Bacterial infections and many more reasons could be giving you a loose bowel. However, these are scenarios where pregnancy can give you diarrhea:

• Increased sensitivities to foods, which may have never caused problems before pregnancy
• Changes to diet, which occur when women first find out they are pregnant, may cause stomach upsets
• Prenatal vitamins can irritate the stomach lining
• Hormone changes usually slow down the digestive system and cause constipation, but the reverse is also true

Another common cause of diarrhea during pregnancy is the release of the hormone prostaglandin,  which softens and ripens your cervix for birth. A side effect of this hormone is that it causes the bowels to loosen, which may give you frequent loose stools.

How To Treat Diarrhea During Pregnancy

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Most of the time, diarrhea during pregnancy will ease up. You can help ease the condition by sticking to light foods which are unlikely to irritate your stomach, such as apples, toast or rice. Stay very hydrated and give your body time to clear out the bacteria or virus that may be causing the diarrhea. If medication is causing the diarrhea, speak to your doctor about changing it. Likewise, if your pre-natal vitamin is causing diarrhea, try a different brand, or change the timing – after food is usually better than on an empty stomach. Diarrhea can lead to dehydration. To prevent dehydration, drink at least 8-12 glasses of water a day.

Fluids such as coconut water, juice and broth can help to replace some of the electrolytes, vitamins and minerals you have lost, easing symptoms such as cramps and dizziness.