Maternal physiological changes in pregnancy range of effects during the pregnancy. Pregnant women experience numerous adjustments in their endocrine system that help support the developing fetus. The fetal-placental unit secretes steroid hormones and proteins that alter the function of various maternal endocrine glands. Sometimes, the changes in certain hormone levels and their effects on their target organs can lead to gestational diabetes and gestational hypertension. Levels of progesterone and estrogen rise continually throughout pregnancy, suppressing the hypothalamic axis and subsequently the menstrual cycle. The progesterone is first produced by the corpus luteum and then by the placenta in the second trimester. Women also experience increased
Menstrual cup investigated whether silicone menstrual cups are a viable alternative to tampons and found that approximately 91% of women in the menstrual cup group said they would continue to use the cup and recommend it to others. In a 1991 clinical study involving 51 women, 23 of the participants (45%) found rubber menstrual cups to be an acceptable way of managing menstrual flow. In a randomized controlled feasibility study in rural western Kenya, adolescent primary school girls were provided with menstrual cups or sanitary pads instead of traditional menstrual care items of cloth or tissue. Girls provided with menstrual cups had