The topic of Matsumi Ladies Clinic Mita English blog in June is about digestion.

In the third part, I create an article about some popular symptoms of the digestive systems during pregnancy.

 

Digestion is the process of breaking down food into smaller molecules of nutrients to be absorbed into the blood and carried to cells throughout the body.

Digestion begins in the mouth and ends in the small intestine.

 

Pregnancy hormones, named progesterone, can affect the digestive systems.

The hormone progesterone, which effects smooth muscle relaxation, often causes slowing of digestion in the stomach and the small intestine.

The reason is because smooth muscles of these organs drive food into the lower parts of the digestive systems.

Some symptoms in relations to digestive discomforts during pregnancy such as nausea, vomiting and constipation are all related to the relaxed tone and slowed movement of these digestive systems.

 

The growing uterus itself can affect the digestive systems.

As the uterus grows, it can press on or even block parts of the digestive tract.

These phenomena cause slowed movement of food in the digestive tract such as, the stomach and small intestine, which results in constipation.

Increasing the fiber in your diet and regular exercise are some of the ways to prevent constipation.

 

Another popular complaint during pregnancy is hemorrhoids.

Hemorrhoids are greatly enlarged or varicose veins in the lower rectum, which cause rectal pain and bleeding.

Hemorrhoids during pregnancy tend to become worse due to constipation and pressure by the enlarging uterus on the blood vessels in the pelvis.