Aug 31, 2009  •  In Pregnancy

Morning Sickness Linked to Higher Child IQ

I read this on BabyZone this morning (when my head was not bent over the toilet):

The Scoop: Although it can be a major nuisance for moms-to-be, morning sickness may actually make for smarter kids, according to a recent Canadian study. In an effort to understand the effect of first trimester nausea on fetal brain development, researchers followed 121 women who had contacted a pregnancy hotline. Among children (now between ages 3 and 7) born to these women, those whose mothers experienced morning sickness scored higher on certain tests of IQ, memory, and language skills, compared to those whose mothers had no symptoms of nausea or vomiting during pregnancy.

For Baby: Women in the study who reported the most severe bouts of morning sickness symptoms tended to have children with the highest test scores (this was even more pronounced if the mom also had a high IQ). According to researchers, morning sickness is most likely triggered by a rapid rise in human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) and thyroxine—two hormones needed during pregnancy to grow and maintain a healthy placenta. While morning sickness is viewed by most as an unwanted side effect of pregnancy, researchers now speculate the condition is a sign of a healthy pregnancy and nourishing placenta. Other studies have linked morning sickness to lower rates of miscarriage, stillbirth, and preterm delivery.

I must be carrying the next Kim Ung-Yong in my womb.

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One Response to “Morning Sickness Linked to Higher Child IQ”

  1. Kate says:

    I sent this post to my mom, and now she’s using it against me mercilessly. Keeps going on about “no wonder I was so appallingly sick” and that I’d better be grateful. 🙂 It’s great.

    Hey, it stands to reason – things like this don’t happen “just because.” The human machine is an amazing piece of work…

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