researchers have just identified the cause of morning sickness

Almost all women have experienced the sometimes very debilitating nausea that marks the first months of pregnancy. Researchers have finally identified the causes of this vomiting. The culprit has a name: it is GDF-15, a hormone, a chemical substance usually produced by organs such as the bladder, prostate or kidneys.

But this protein is also produced by the fetus during pregnancy. It spreads throughout the mother’s body and it is precisely by spreading that GDF-15 causes nausea. This would in fact be a protective mechanism against the increase in the level of this protein. Nearly 70% of pregnant women experience nausea during pregnancy. It is often called morning sickness even though it can occur at any time.

Nausea that can lead to hospitalization

For some women, this nausea can go beyond simple discomfort. It’s real suffering. Dehydration, inability to eat, weakness… and nausea that doesn’t stop. The consequences of this vomiting can even require hospitalization, this is what doctors call hyperemesis gravidarum.

The researchers’ discovery, which has just been published in the journal Nature [article en anglais], could open the way to treatment because the women most exposed to this nausea would be those who have low levels of GDF-15 before pregnancy. The idea of ​​this consortium of international scientists would therefore be to expose them to this hormone before pregnancy to get them used to it. No miracle cure is yet on the agenda but scientists are working on it, notably the American head of this study who herself suffered from this nausea during her pregnancy.