Why is hydration so important for pregnant and post-partum women so important?
Let’s chat hydration in pregnancy, postpartum and breastfeeding women and how it works.
The hard facts about hydration
Hydration – the balance between the water coming in and going out Studies show that many pregnant women have insufficient water intake.6
Your hydration needs increase during the pregnancy and breastfeeding periods. Here’s why!
83% OF BLOOD IS COMPOSED OF WATER6
Blood plasma volume increases by approximately 6% in the first trimester, 18-29% between 14-27 weeks and 40-50% by the end of the third trimester. That’s almost a one and a half times increase in blood volume!5
ADEQUATE WATER INTAKE IS CRITICAL TO MAINTAINING LIFE
Maintaining hydration during such drastic bodily changes with pregnancy and breastfeeding is essential for keeping you and your bub happy and healthy.
WATER ACCOUNTS FOR APPROXIMATELY 55-65% OF BODY WEIGHT3
For a pregnant women who gains 11kg of body mass during the whole pregnancy, approximately 7-8L comes from water retention4
SOLID FOODS CONTRIBUTE APPROX. 20% OF TOTAL WATER INTAKE
The remaining 80-% comes from water and other fluids.2,5
You need hydration to:
- Provide the water needed to form the amniotic fluid that surrounds and cushions your baby > hydration directly affects the amniotic fluid
- Produce the additional blood supply to your circulation and support your expanding plasma volume
- Produce the additional blood supply needed to support baby’s circulation
- Improve your digestion and aid in absorption of water-soluble vitamins3
- Carry the additional (and required) nutrients from your diet
- Eliminate waste products
∙ Maintain your body temperature - Ensure there is enough reserve to tolerate blood loss during delivery3
You lose water through 4 ways:6
- Urine (filtered through the kidneys)> the kidneys become slightly larger in pregnancy with an increase blood flow rate and hence increase urine production during pregnancy.
- Sweat (through your skin) > increased sweating during pregnancy.
- Breathing (through the respiratory system) > there is an increased respiratory rate in pregnancy and hence increase loss of water ∙
- Bowel motions (through the digestive system) > increased nutrient and energy requirements for pregnant women and lactating women leads to increased food intake > water is the carrier of these nutrients
Breastfeeding women
Breastfeeding women need extra nutrients and this is because the body is working harder to make breastmilk full of nutrients for your baby.
Lactating women
Lactating women need to replace fluid lost in breastmilk to maintain hydration. Water accounts for 87% of breastmilk. Breastfeeding women produce (on average) 780ml per day for the first 6 months.
This is equivalent to 700ml of water hence a breastfeeding woman needs to drink 700ml above the above the normal daily requirements to maintain hydration2.
The problem?
Staying hydrated during pregnancy and when breastfeeding can be challenging and (for most) requires a conscious effort. But staying hydrated when pregnant and breastfeeding is essential to keep up with the body’s changes.
∙ 70-80% of pregnant women experience nausea and vomiting.1 This can lead to a further lack of hydration as many women don’t drink extra fluids to compensate for the losses. ∙ Life’s busy. Remembering to stay hydrated is hard. Let us help with that. ∙ Some evidence shows that a lack of appropriate hydration to meet your needs during pregnancy can lead to negative pregnancy outcomes
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