Aversion to certain foods, drinks, or smells

Aversion to certain, specific foods, drinks, or smells something that comes with the job when you are pregnant. In a sense, this is simply an extension of pregnancy nausea and vomiting. But these aversions do not always make you feel sick, or cause you to vomit. Sometimes, newly pregnant women simply find that things that they used to love no longer appeal to them.

One of aversions that is most frequently encountered by expectant mothers is an aversion to coffee. Even if you used to drink so many cups of coffee that you might as well have bought shares in Starbucks before, it is entirely possible that the thought of drinking coffee just no longer appeals to you. Strong perfume smells, or the smell of fish, are also common offenders. Do you normally get Chinese take-out every Saturday evening, but now prefer to nibble on some carrots instead? Totally normal! Just accept that this is one of the pregnancy signs! Unsurprisingly, theories that such aversions were "designed by nature" to protect your growing fetus from harmful substances go round quite a lot.

We think that such theories sound logical and plausible. It must be noted that there is no scientific evidence (yet) that pregnant women have aversions to foods, drinks, or other items because they could be dangerous for your baby. Just as there are women who can't drink a single cup of coffee during pregnancy, there are also those who crave caffeine. And then there are those expectant moms who simply can't resist items that are clearly not good to eat, like paper, soap, and similar non-food items (look at our article about ice cravings during pregnancy for a common example). If you have noticed sudden aversions to things that you liked, or that were at least bearable before, it might be a great reason to take a pregnancy test. These aversions often turn up at the same time as morning sickness.