Nausea and vomiting in pregnancy affects approximately three quarters of pregnant women in the first trimester. About half of all pregnant women experience both nausea and vomiting, one quarter experience nausea alone, and one quarter luck out all together. Symptoms usually start around 6 weeks, and most commonly ease up around 14 weeks gestation. For some women nausea and vomiting can be worse in the morning, while in others they might experience the symptoms on and off all day. The most well known theory for the cause of nausea and vomiting in pregnancy is thedramatic rise in the hormone hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin). This rise in hCG is the most dramatic in the first trimester, a
Cervical ripening occurs when the cervix softens and becomes more distensible which coaxes the baby into the best possible position for birth. Multiple studies have shown the benefits of acupuncture in preparing the body for birth, and assisting the cervix to ripen. The studies In 1974, a study was published in The American Journal of Acupuncture. It concluded that acupuncture as a form of birth preparation helped to reduce the average time a woman spends in labour. Further, in 1998, Zeizler etal. found that acupuncture treatments from 36 weeks onwards had a positive effect on shortening the first stage of labour, which is defined from 3cm cervical dilation to complete dilation of 10cm. T
