Morning sickness breakthrough raises hopes of possible cure

Nausea and vomiting affect about 80% of women at some point during pregnancy. Photograph: ImagesBazaar/Getty Images

Scientists have uncovered why many women experience morning sickness during pregnancy, raising the prospects of a cure for the condition.

The study revealed that a hormone produced by the foetus is the trigger for nausea and vomiting in pregnancy, which in extreme cases can require hospital treatment. Crucially, women who have naturally low levels of the hormone prior to pregnancy tend to be more sensitive to the surge of the hormone, called GDF15, in the first trimester, the research suggests.