to eat or not to eat while in labor

queenie521 · July 2010

that is the question

LCB34 · July 2010

My hospital does not allow you to eat.

Verbose · July 2010

I'm going to labor at home for as long as I can. I'm definitely eating if I feel hungry. I'm the crabbiest hungry person on earth. Who knows how long it will be until I see my next meal?

queenie521 · July 2010

i'm talking about while i am home. i'd say i'm about 2 hrs (maybe) from going to the hospital.

MrsSR · July 2010

I'm not. I'm banking on me puking while in labor, so I want my stomach as empty as possible.

carrottopshaw · July 2010

I ate popcicles and ice chips because my lips and mouth were so dry. My hospital allows you to eat as long as the baby isn't in distress and it doesn't look like a csection will be necessary .I didn't eat because nothing really sounded good and labor was too fast anyway.

djfacemachine · July 2010

I'm going to try to eat, at least some snacks or something. If I go too long without food I start to feel really weak and awful and that's probably not good for labor.

SarahC720 · July 2010

EAT! I learned in class to have a high-protein/low-fat something (like, turkey sandwich) in early labor to keep your energy up. At my last appt, the midwife even brought eating up to me. She compared labor to a marathon and said that women almost need to carbo-load if they want the energy to make it through. I plan to labor at home as long as possible and she told me to make sure I eat something easy to digest (so, not a cheeseburger) and DRINK a ton while at home because "they" only let you have clear liquids once you get to the hospital. Makes sense to me, so I am going to listen.

Good luck!

queenie521 · July 2010

I think I am gonna do some toast and peanutbutter. I think carbs and protein should be good right now.

mossyoakcowgurl · July 2010

LCB34:
My hospital does not allow you to eat.

this! we are only allowed ice chips

etessler · July 2010

I definitely am. I'm not talking large meals, but snacks yes for sure. I am also staying at home as long as possible, and I was told to prepare like you are about to run a marathon...that you don't want to hit a wall due to no energy/improper fueling.

Artemis0685 · July 2010

queenie521:
I think I am gonna do some toast and peanutbutter. I think carbs and protein should be good right now.

you def should!!!

tastyburger · July 2010

I also vote for eating, even knowing that I will probably throw up. It's easier on my tummy to throw up some food than just stomach bile anyway.

I plan on making really rich chicken broth ice cubes for a boost of protein if I need it in the final hour. Also laboring at home as long as possible. Also sneaking in some high protein snacks because if I want to eat while I'm at the hospital, I will.

chewychigozie · July 2010

If my doc allows it.

LindseyJW · July 2010

absolutely!

IMO, not allowing women to eat while in labor serves only the hospital. do you not eat before you go out for a drive in case you have an accident and need surgery? the whole idea, IMO, is ridiculous. you are monitored while in surgery and if you vomit, someone will know, and can elevate your head so you don't choke. that's what they did for me when i had unplanned surgery.

you need the energy from calories in order to keep up your strength and have a healthy labor/birth.

some women don't want to eat (the idea of food is nauseating), but for those that do, i think not permitting them is outrageous and shouldn't be tolerated.

KKcowgirl · July 2010

My hospital won't allow food or water during labor. I plan on sneaking in bottled water though----- I can't live on ice chips alone for hours on end. I don't care if they are pumping me full of IV fluids............no one is getting between me and my bottle of water!!

All this will be for naught of course......if I go c-section b/c he hasn't moved.

gnomely · July 2010

I would eat. Toast and peanut butter sounds great. Maybe some Gatorade or fruit juice right before you leave for an electrolyte/hydration boost.

Good luck!

FishNchips1 · July 2010

My hopsital tells us to labor at home as long as possible.. once you come in you are only allowed ice chips. boooo

WinesNotWhines · July 2010

We're only allowed to eat/drink clear things, like jello, hard candy, gummy bears, and popsicles. I plan to bring some of those snacks to the hospital.

ETA: About the marathon thing - I've run a marathon, and the only things I ate during the race were gummy candies and energy gels. So I'm planning the same sort of thing during labor. I definitely didn't want to eat a turkey sandwich at mile 20. Ick!

Ready2006 · July 2010

LindseyJW:
absolutely!

IMO, not allowing women to eat while in labor serves only the hospital. do you not eat before you go out for a drive in case you have an accident and need surgery? the whole idea, IMO, is ridiculous. you are monitored while in surgery and if you vomit, someone will know, and can elevate your head so you don't choke. that's what they did for me when i had unplanned surgery.

you need the energy from calories in order to keep up your strength and have a healthy labor/birth.

some women don't want to eat (the idea of food is nauseating), but for those that do, i think not permitting them is outrageous and shouldn't be tolerated.

Ditto this. I'm bringing snacks to the hospital and will eat at home....if I feel like it. I might be pukey the whole time (I get pukey more often than I'd like!) and might just not want to, but I'll be prepared. I'm also planning to bring gatorade and ginger ale with me so I'm not stuck with just water.

SparkleK · July 2010

We're encouraged to eat, but are reminded that with labor sometimes comes nausia, so they recommend crackers, popsicles, and hard candy.

delg23 · July 2010

Verbose:
I'm going to labor at home for as long as I can. I'm definitely eating if I feel hungry. I'm the crabbiest hungry person on earth. Who knows how long it will be until I see my next meal?

This!

marta602 · July 2010

I ate after my water broke with DS (labored at home for 6 hours,) but once I was in active labor I couldn't even keep ice chips down. Even after labor I couldn't keep a sprite down for a couple hours.

niccole_e · July 2010

I wasn't allowed to eat but my husband snuck me a bagel, I was so famished and getting so sick because of it.

deltadawn79 · July 2010

totally eat - even if your hospital does not allow you to eat, bring snacks in your bag - you have the right to keep your energy up during your labor!

MTAngel · July 2010

I'm all for eating while you are in early labor. For me, it was nice to have energy and not feel hungry while laboring with DS, I did end up throwing up once my labor got intense but it wasn't so bad. Good luck!

skyejo · July 2010

My MW is fine with whatever I want to eat but recommends nothing heavy. She suggested having popsicles, Jello, chicken broth, pretzels, stuff like that. I'm glad that I have the option to eat something if I'm hungry!

preciousmetal · July 2010

Eat until they tell you that you can't. By the time I had my daughter, I'd been in the hospital more than 24 hours and only had orange jello. Luckily they did give me some cranberry juice while I was actually pushing, which was greatly appreciated.

rc2586 · July 2010

I'm definitely going to eat something light in early labor. I usually eat about 6 small meals a day and I know my energy level goes way down if I haven't had anything to eat in a while. I'm thinking protein- a hard boiled egg, yogurt, or nuts and a fruit- either cherries, strawberries, or blueberries.

veebug22 · July 2010

I'm eating for sure. I want to keep my energy up. I don't think our hospital allows it, so I'll labor at home as long as possible and then sneak stuff at the hospital if I have to. I'm going to try to eat lightly though (chicken broth, fruit smoothies, etc). Actually the concern isn't the surgery -- eating is only an issue if you vomit under general anesthesia. For epidurals, it's not as much of an issue. It's just if they have to put you out completely (which is really rare) that chances are higher of you aspirating on your own vomit. I'm sure it doesn't help the cause during a c-section, but the surgery is not why they forbid it, it's the possibility of general anesthesia during a c-section.

shakes · July 2010

SarahC720:

EAT! I learned in class to have a high-protein/low-fat something (like, turkey sandwich) in early labor to keep your energy up. At my last appt, the midwife even brought eating up to me. She compared labor to a marathon and said that women almost need to carbo-load if they want the energy to make it through. I plan to labor at home as long as possible and she told me to make sure I eat something easy to digest (so, not a cheeseburger) and DRINK a ton while at home because "they" only let you have clear liquids once you get to the hospital. Makes sense to me, so I am going to listen.

Good luck!

THIS THIS THIS THIS!!!!!! Exhaustion is huge issue in labour and this is why!

Sxia · July 2010

Eat. And those who say you can't, it's your body, do what you want. The only reason you shouldn't eat a heavy meal is you may throw up. You need energy. I brought gatorade and granola bars. (light ones, not sugary.)

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