Why is the sleeping position on the left side best for pregnant women?

Not only nutritional intake that needs to be regulated, sleeping position during pregnancy also needs to be considered. Sleeping on your left side is said to be the best sleeping position during pregnancy. Why is that? Come on, find out the answer in the following review.

Why are pregnant women better off sleeping on their side?

Sleeping on your stomach is considered bad for pregnant women. However, the position on your back and sideways to the right is just as bad. Many health experts suggest that pregnant women should sleep on their left side.

In fact, sleeping on your right side during pregnancy will put pressure on the inferior vena cava (IVC) which is on the right side of the spine. The inferior vena cava is responsible for draining blood from the legs back to the heart.

"If pregnant women sleep on their backs, the fetus will suppress the IVC thereby reducing the amount of blood that should return to the heart," explained Dr. Grace Pien, assistant lecturer at John Hopkins University School of Medicine, as quoted by Live Science.

Depressed IVC makes blood unable to flow smoothly so that oxygen and food intake for the mother and fetus are not optimal. This condition can cause blood pressure problems, breathing, and death. This sleeping position is very risky if performed by pregnant women with asthma or sleep apnea.

A study published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology (BJOG) shows that pregnant women who sleep on their backs are 2.3 times more likely to have babies. still birth (the baby died in the womb).

When pregnant, is it better to sleep on your right or left side?

Source: Fits Mom

If sleeping on your side is better than on your back during pregnancy, what direction should it be? A study published in the British Medical Journal in 2015, showed that sleeping on your right side also increased a small riskstill birth rather than sideways to the left. Unfortunately, this research still needs to be done more deeply.

So, pregnant women can change the sleeping position on the left side. This promotes comfort during sleep and prevents cramps or soreness when waking from the same position for a long time.

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