Obstetrical Nursing: A Text-Book on the Nursing Care of the Expectant Mother, the Woman in Labor, the Young Mother and Her BabyVan Blarcom, Carolyn Conant
Science
Obstetrical Nursing: A Text-Book on the Nursing Care of the Expectant Mother, the Woman in Labor, the Young Mother and Her Baby
Van Blarcom, Carolyn Conant
Infants -- Care; Maternity nursing; Pregnancy
We seem to get back to the principles of personal hygiene as preventives
of nausea during pregnancy, for simple, light food, taken in small
quantities five or six times daily, eaten slowly and masticated
thoroughly; the cultivation of a happy frame of mind; exercise and fresh
air all tend to avert this very uncomfortable condition. Its prevention
is of great importance, as the habit of vomiting is easily acquired but
broken with difficulty. The common causes of nausea, and their
prevention, should therefore be explained to the average patient, for
she will then be able to help herself in warding it off.
Should “morning sickness” occur, however, it may be relieved in many
cases, by eating two or three hard, unsweetened crackers or pieces of
toast, with nothing to drink, immediately upon awakening and then lying
still afterwards for half or three quarters of an hour. The sufferer
should then dress slowly, sitting down as much as possible while doing
so, and eat her regular breakfast. Lying flat, without a pillow, and
keeping very quiet for a little while after meals, or whenever feeling
the slightest premonitory symptom, will frequently prevent, and also
relieve nausea, and sometimes comfort is derived from the use of either
hot or cold applications to the abdomen. Some patients are relieved by
having hot coffee or even a full breakfast before arising.
=Heartburn=, so called, which is experienced by many pregnant women, has
nothing to do with the heart. It is caused solely by an excess of
hydrochloric acid in the stomach, and is usually described as a burning
sensation first in the stomach, then rising into the throat. It may be
prevented, as a rule, by taking a tablespoonful of olive oil, or a
cupful of cream or rich milk, fifteen or twenty minutes before meals,
and avoiding fat and fried food at the meals immediately following.
This apparent inconsistency in treatment is due to the facts that fat
taken into the empty stomach tends to inhibit the secretion of acid,
while fat and fatty foods taken with meals tend to prolong their stay in
the stomach and this in turn stimulates the secretion of hydrochloric
acid, the thing to be avoided.
A patient with a tendency to heartburn will be wise, therefore, if she
generally eliminates oils, fats and fatty foods from her meals, and
definitely avoids them when the burning occurs. Since the painful,
burning sensation is directly due to an excess of acid in the stomach,
the obvious step toward relief is to take an alkali at once. A
tablespoonful of lime-water is often satisfactory; a teaspoonful of
sodium bicarbonate in water; a small piece of magnesium carbonate may be
nibbled by itself, or any alkaline water that the patient fancies may be
taken.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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