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Staying up late has long been known to have a direct negative impact on one's physical and psychological condition. In fact, staying up late in the long term is also associated with an increased risk of a number of chronic diseases, ranging from diabetes to heart disease. But it turns out, often staying up during pregnancy saves a myriad of risks.
What is the danger if you often stay up during pregnancy?
Poor quality and duration of sleep are commonly experienced by pregnant women. Not only are things going back and forth to the restroom all night, but also after the stomach gets bigger, it's hard to be able to sleep comfortably. Not to mention having to deal with symptoms of insomnia, which is also common during pregnancy. Even women who generally get a good night's sleep so having a hard time falling asleep and staying asleep, so many choose to stay up until the morning before.
Not getting enough sleep during pregnancy can have a detrimental effect, not only for the health of the mother but also for the womb.
1. Staying up late during pregnancy increases the risk of preterm labor
Half of the total premature births are unknown, but staying up during pregnancy is one of the potential causes. Research has shown that sleep deprivation can harm the immune system by causing excess production of cytokines.
For most people, excess cytokines will attack and destroy healthy cells, causing the body's immune system to not work against disease. For pregnant women, increased levels of cytokines can affect the performance of blood vessels in the spine that lead to the placenta, increasing the likelihood of preterm birth and depression. Depression during pregnancy is a risk factor for serious labor complications.
2. Staying up during pregnancy increases the risk of preeclampsia
Women who are still young pregnant but not getting enough sleep (less than five hours per night) in the first 14 weeks of their pregnancy are reported to be 10 times more at risk for preeclampsia, a condition that causes high blood pressure. Complications of preeclampsia include organ damage and even death in the womb. This can also be fatal for mothers undergoing caesarean section or prescribed drugs that trigger labor, after being diagnosed with preeclampsia.
3. Staying up late during pregnancy increases the risk of high blood pressure
The average person's blood pressure drops to 10 to 20 percent during sleep. This means that mothers who stay up during pregnancy will have blood pressure that is higher than the normal average for the next 24-hour period. Although the increase in blood pressure is fairly small, it still affects the way the heart functions during pregnancy. Not getting enough sleep also changes the levels of endothelin hormone and vasopressin. Both work regulate the size of blood vessels in the body, which affects blood pressure.
4. Staying up during pregnancy increases the chances of a caesarean section
A number of studies have found that women who sleep less than six hours per night during the final months of pregnancy are more likely to have a caesarean section. For pregnant women who want to have normal labor, this can be a particular concern.
But there is also the risk of potentially danger associated with caesarean delivery. Childbirth by caesarean section is known to pose a risk of respiratory problems for children later in life. Babies born by caesarean also often have a low Apgar score, a value scale that shows how healthy your baby is at birth.
5. Staying up during pregnancy prolongs the normal labor process
Mothers who sleep less than six hours per night during the final months of pregnancy have a higher risk of having a long, normal labor. Long-term labor (defined as labor lasting more than 24 hours) can be painful and uncomfortable for the mother, but prolonged labor can also have a negative impact on the baby.
For example, prolonged labor increases the baby's risk of breathing meconium particles into the lungs, which can be dangerous because it interferes with normal breathing. According to the World Health Organization, labor that takes a long time also increases the risk of the baby experiencing infection.
6. Mothers stay up during pregnancy, children are at risk of being overweight
Often staying up during pregnancy, especially during the third trimester, increases the chance of weight gain and metabolic abnormalities in children after they reach adulthood, according to a 2014 study published in the journal Diabetes. The researchers attributed overweight and metabolic changes to epigenetic modification which reduced the expression of the adiponectin gene.
Adiponectin is actually a beneficial hormone. This is a hormone that helps the body regulate several metabolic processes, including glucose regulation. Adiponectin also reduces cholesterol and protects your heart. An increase in adiponectin levels in the body of an adult is related to the percentage of body fat which tends to decrease. Meanwhile, poor adiponectin levels due to staying up during pregnancy are related to increased body fat and a tendency towards less active lifestyles.
