Cravings and aversions during pregnancy

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100 primiparae were studied in order to establish the prevalence among them and the nature of cravings and aversions for certain articles of diet not normally compulsively longed for or disliked. Either or both were found to occur frequently, even more often together than separately. As observed by others the commonest craving was for fruit and the commonest aversion for tea or coffee, although the total catalogue of substances in either category is lengthy. It was also noted that substances craved for were rarely those for which aversion was felt and that the two categories of foodstuffs were more or less distinct. The commonest craving was for fruit and for sweet, sour, or sharp-tasting foodstuffs. It was felt, although cravings and aversions are almost certainly closely related to one another, that cravings are more probably the outcome of an impaired sense of taste in pregnancy, whereas aversions may have more to do with alteration in the sense of smell. An attempt to relate the occurrence of cravings and aversions to a large number of other factors relevant to pregnancy suggested several positive relationships. These included a history of pica and of food-fads during childhood, a history of change in appetite in response to emotional stress, and habits in regard to smoking and drinking alcohol. As all these may be considered as forms of oral behaviour, it is felt that their occurrence in some women with cravings and aversions may indicate a predisposition probably due to a degree of oral fixation.