Waking up in the middle of the night hungry

[Newtobecomingamum]

I don't sleep well as it is but around about 3am every night I wake up/or am already wake starving hungry! I have to go and eat cereal, toast or a few biscuits. Also, before I go to bed, I get the same thing and often have to eat a round of toast or cereal. I'm 36 weeks pregnant and getting more hungry as odd times as the weeks go by. Does anyone else gave this? So worried I'm going to put extra weight on : (

[Newtobecomingamum]

Stupid auto spell! At and have!

[mrsbugsywugsy]

yes and its even worse now i am bfing. Try eating something straight before bed - I have a Horlicks every night (party animal, me); a friend of mine has a bowl of porridge before she goes to sleep.

[UnderwaterBasketWeaving]

I remember this! I used to take a "packed lunch" to bed! Just a few midnight snacks. Continued for a few weeks after birth too!

Do eat if you're hungry, you'll never sleep otherwise.

[pinkteapot]

lol at the packed lunch! i've had some midnight feasts as well. stick to cereal or toast, rather than cake, cant see you getting huge due to an extra bit of porridge or bread at night. If you are hungry you have to eat!

[harleyd]

im up at 3 most nights eating banana and yogurt

[mumoftwoboysS]

Yep can relate to that-EVERY night for the last 2 pregnancies, and now this one I religiously had a bowl of cereal just before bed! I think It was due to hunger but also a craving. Also have woken up hungry in the night- if you're the type to eat little and often it may be just too long to wait all night before eating again ;-) take some snacks to bed I say- or keep the weetabix out on the kitchen counter for midnight snacks!

[SourSweets]

Yes! 4am every morning I wake up needing to eat. I have a bowl of cereal then that sees me through until 8 or 9. Sometimes it helps to eat my dinner really late, but even then I have to eat small portions as there's a bloomin' baby in the way.

[Kitkatinatin]

Me too! All the way through first trimester and patches through second. I couldn't keep up with what I needed to eat - if I tried to ignore I'd feel awful. Now approaching third trimester and my emergency midnight banana snack is getting eaten more often thAn not... Porridge before bed is a great idea!

[lexib]

Yep, me too. In second trimester now and thought it was nearly over - but this morning my own belly woke me up with a series of deep, lasting, giant gurgles - could have laughed it was so comical.

[dizzy77]

I'm 37 wks and have this on & off. I've been trying to have lower GI stuff which can help (hungriest after v carby dinner or fish & chips). Glass of full day milk and a few Brazil nuts at 3am usually sends me back.

Still I have I have been mainlining the Green & Blacks mint fondant bars low GI my bum.

[Newtobecomingamum]

It's so nice to read all of the posts and know you're not the only one! I don't feel so bad now! Silly question but is it the baby that is hungry at that time or just your body in general? The reason I ask is he gets so active kicking around like crazy at that time and once I've eaten he goes back to sleep!

[ButteryJam]

I get this now and then! I keep dried fruit next to my bed :)

[Kitkatinatin]

new I've read that baby is more likely to wriggle around when you're still - or at least you can notice it more. Mine has disco every night! Also read that baby always gets what it needs - effective parasite- so for example even those with bad morning sickness who can't eat anything - baby wi be just fine. So I think it's you that's hungry rather than baby if that makes sense.

[UnderwaterBasketWeaving]

It's definitely just you that's hungry!

The baby is nourished by diffusion (and active transport) of nutrients and oxygen across the placenta. The blood supply to the placenta will be rich in these things, the baby's blood will have less of them and so the nutrients and oxygen will diffuse across from the area of high concentration (mothers blood) to the area of low concentration (baby's blood). If the baby is active, or having a growth spurt (relative to the normal huge growth), it'll use more nutrients/oxygen than at other times so more will diffuse across and there will therefore be less in the mothers blood. Which will make you feel hungry!

Also, you're growing a baby, and carrying more weight. In the day you're probably eating fairly regularly, but not normally at night, so you're probably needing to simply top up!

[Newtobecomingamum]

Thanks for all of the advice... Looks like I can't blame it on the baby then lol, it's just me!! I will just carry on with the night eating as my body is obviously telling me something and needing me to eat to feel that hungry. Good to know that I'm not alone. Right, I'm off for a weetabix munch and the hunger has just come on! Lol

[BumpAndGrind]

Morning! Just had my Muller Rice....back to bed with me....

[Teaandflapjacks]

With your here hon - I had shocking MS for the first 24 weeks or so and now this has gone I am hungry ALL THE TIME. I get up and have a middle of the night snack like toast etc. Thank goodness for marmite on toast - all that lovely salt in it - mmm. I think about food an inordinate amount - all the things I can't still keep down and will when I can, and what i want to eat next.