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Neither Kari Young-Webster nor Hillary Mayell could stomach being in close proximity to raw animal products during their pregnancies.
"Uncooked chicken creeped me out," said Mayell, mother of two teen-agers.

"I could not touch raw meat," said Young-Webster, who had her first baby this past summer. "I went to sushi before I knew you shouldn't eat sushi, but I couldn't eat it."

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Women who experience morning sickness are significantly less likely to miscarry.

Women who vomit are significantly less likely to miscarry than those who only experience nausea.

Many pregnant women have aversions during the first trimester to alcoholic beverages and beverages containing caffeine as well as strong-tasting vegetables. The greatest aversions are to meat, fish, poultry and eggs.
Of all foods distasteful to pregnant women, meat, fish, poultry and eggs carry the greatest risk of food-borne pathogens.

"Avoiding food-borne microorganisms is particularly important to pregnant women because they are immuno-suppressed, presumably to reduce the chances of rejecting the tissues of their own offspring," the scientists note in their report. "As a result, pregnant women are often vulnerable to serious, often deadly, infections."

"Our findings do not imply that pregnant women should avoid animal products in pregnancy," said Flaxman. "For many women animal products are key sources of many essential nutrients during pregnancy, and our modern food-handling practices have made all of our food incredibly safe to eat. Our key point is that 'morning sickness' should not be seen as sickness, but rather as a normal, evolved phenomenon with potential benefits to both mother and offspring."

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The study does suggest that interfering with morning sickness may not be good idea for pregnant women.

"The body has a certain wisdom," said Sherman. "Listen to it."