The following article brings forth the causes and remedies for dark yellow urine during pregnancy. Read on…
When a woman is pregnant, there are numerous changes that she experiences in her body, most of which are pretty normal and nothing to worry about. One of these changes is the darkening of the urine. A pregnant woman might observe that her urine has become dark and bright yellow in color. As most women are really worried about the health of their unborn during pregnancy, even this slight change can make them nervous and anxious.
Causes
First of all, let me clarify that dark urine during pregnancy is completely harmless. It is not associated with any kind of disease or infection or medical condition, especially when no other symptoms are accompanying it. One of the probable causes is dehydration. If the pregnant woman has not had enough water to drink, it can lead to dehydration. In such a situation, “urochrome”, a pigment, increases in the urine, thus giving it a dark color.
Another reason could be intake of certain supplements and prenatal vitamins by the pregnant woman. Vitamin B-12 is especially known to change the urine to become bright yellow in color. When a pregnant woman takes prenatal vitamins, whatever her body is unable to absorb from them, gets eliminated from the body through the urine. That’s the reason why the urine gets a dark yellow color.
Certain fruits and vegetables such as beet root, carrots and asparagus, may change the urine color to dark yellow too. Thus, a pregnant woman who is taking prenatal vitamins or is eating these fruits and vegetables, will observe that her urine has become dark in color.
Remedies
If the condition is caused by dehydration, then simply increasing the fluid intake, will solve the problem. So, a pregnant woman should make it a point to drink two to three liters of water everyday. Carrying a bottle of water at all times and sipping on it throughout the day, will clear the urine to some extent, although to have a pale yellow urine during pregnancy, at all times, is not possible.
If the condition is caused by prenatal vitamins and fruits and vegetables, then there is nothing to worry about at all. Fruits, vegetables and prenatal vitamins are actually necessary to keep your body healthy so that it can carry the baby for nine months. That’s why, even if the urine is dark yellow in color, keep on taking a balanced diet full of fruits and vegetables, along with prenatal vitamins, to ensure a healthy pregnancy. If you are still concerned, you can ask your doctor to devise a balanced meal plan for you.
Complications
This is not a very serious condition and it can be taken care of easily, most of the time. However, if along with change in the urine color, a pregnant woman experiences symptoms such as frequent urination, pain while urinating or a burning sensation while urinating, pain in lower abdomen, blood or mucus in the urine, she should consult a doctor for a thorough check-up, as it could signal a urinary tract infection. An untreated urinary tract infection can lead to a kidney infection, resulting in complications like early labor and an underweight newborn. As these can pose a threat to the mother and the baby, a doctor should be consulted for a thorough diagnosis.
The above condition is not something that you should be worried about, especially when there are no other symptoms, as almost all pregnant women experience a change in the color of their urine, every now and then, when carrying a baby. However, if you are still anxious about it, mention it to your doctor in the next visit and get yourself checked.
