Symptoms Of Rising HCG Levels

hCG- Human chorionic gonadotropin is a hormone formed in trophoblast tissue (tissue that helps embryos attach to the wall of the uterus, protect the embryo, and later become part of the placenta during pregnancy). hCG helps thicken a person’s uterine lining which supports a growing embryo & signals the body to stop menstruation. The hCG hormone stimulates the corpus luteum to produce progesterone to maintain the pregnancy. The symptoms of rising hCG levels are seen after conception & continue to rise until about 10 weeks into pregnancy.

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What Is hCG And Its Functions?

Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) is a hormone released by the placenta during pregnancy. At the initial, hCG is secreted to help maintain the corpus luteum (a collection of cells that make the uterus a healthy place for pregnancy). The formation of hCG indicates to the body that there’s an embryo growing in the uterus and requires uterine receptivity prepared to continue pregnancy.

The hCG hormone functions as an inhibitor to ovaries from egg production during pregnancy, it helps in the development and protection of the embryo and helps the uterine functioning to create a healthy place for pregnancy.

Symptoms Of Rising hCG Levels

The main indication of the rising hCG level in the body tells that there’s life growing in the uterus referring to early signs of pregnancy. Below, we have discussed some of the most common symptoms of rising hCG levels during natural pregnancy as well as symptoms of rising hCG levels in IVF:

1. Positive pregnancy: About 1 to 2 weeks after implantation, a woman’s hCG levels rise higher which indicates early signs of pregnancy. Pregnancy can be confirmed through blood tests, ultrasound, strip tests, etc.
2. High concentration of beta hCG: During over-the-counter pregnancy tests, a high concentration of beta hCG in the urine indicates signs of positive pregnancy. hCG circulates through the body and is eliminated in the urine during urination.
3. Morning sickness: Nausea or vomiting is referred to as morning sickness. About 70% to 80% of women will experience such sickness early in the morning when there is pregnancy and release more amount of hCG. Therefore, more sickness is considered one of the symptoms of rising hCG levels.
4. Fatigue: A feeling of exhaustion, or lack of energy referred to as fatigue occurs during pregnancy in every woman. This factor during pregnancy is due to the sudden rise of hormone levels mainly including hCG and others like progesterone, estrogen, relaxin, oxytocin, and prolactin. The hormone changes make the blood volume increase, blood vessels increase and expand and the heart pumps harder and faster, all of this can contribute to fatigue and is considered as the symptoms of rising hCG levels.
5. Dizziness or light-headedness: A sudden feeling of off-balance or light-headedness causing unsteadiness is another symptom of rising hCG hormone levels. Such factors are experienced due to early positive pregnancy.
6. Breast tenderness: One of the first signs of pregnancy is experiencing breast pain, tenderness, and sore boobs starting just 1 to 2 weeks after conception. This factor is caused by surging hCG hormones and progesterone.
7. Food cravings: Many women will change their normal foodings and crave specific foods, especially pickles, candy, fruit, chips, and sweet and salty food. Surges in food cravings are very normal for pregnant women. Such cravings are because of psychosocial factors, nutritional deficits, and hormonal changes. Therefore, food cravings are also one symptom of rising hCG levels.
8. Frequent urination: During pregnancy, frequent urination in women is normal, especially in the first couple of weeks after conception. After the embryo implants in the uterus, the body produces a pregnancy hormone called hCG, which can trigger more frequent urination in pregnancy.
9. Feeling emotionally sensitive: Mood swings can occur due to enormous physical and emotional changes, as well as shifting pregnancy hormones. Such deviations can cause everything from bouts of crying to anger and irritability to forgetfulness during pregnancy.

hCG symptoms Vs. Progesterone symptoms

The table below describes the hCG symptoms Vs. Progesterone symptoms:

Symptoms of rising hCG levels not pregnant

Sometimes, hCG levels can rise higher than normal for many different reasons even if you didn’t try to conceive either through ART or intercourse. The reasons for rising hCG levels unrelated to pregnancy can be due to certain health problems and such symptoms are:

• Inflammatory bowel disease.
• Cancers like liver, stomach, pancreas, lung, breast, or skin
• Ovary & testicle germ cell tumors, either benign or malignant
• Smoking cannabis (marijuana).
• Stomach ulcer or cirrhosis of the liver
• Miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy,
• Pituitary hCG production,
• Trophoblastic disease.
• Chronic kidney disease
• Aging people.
• Pregnancy loss.

Does Folic Acid Increase hCG Levels?

No, folic acid does not directly increase the hCG levels but the placenta, which produces hCG, relies on adequate folic acid to develop and function properly. Folic acid can help support healthy hCG levels during pregnancy but no proof of increasing hCG levels so far.

However, there is some evidence that suggests that taking folic acid may increase hCG levels in people who are not pregnant but more proof is needed to determine whether this is the case. If you are considering taking folic acid and you are not pregnant, it is important to speak with your doctor to determine whether this is the right choice for you.

Do prenatal vitamins increase hCG levels?

The truth about the hCG level is that there’s no possible way to increase or reduce the hCG levels or make them go up, not even with prenatal vitamins. Forceful manipulation of hCG levels by certain sources of prenatal vitamins can address the cause of any potential problems.

Prenatal vitamins can help boost the health of hCG rather than increasing its levels.

• Vitamin A helps to increase trophoblast cell regression, as well as to decrease β-hCG levels.
• Vitamins C and E, separately or combined, decrease the secretion of hCG by cytotrophoblasts and increase their production of TNF-alpha.

How To Increase hCG Levels In Early Pregnancy?

Unfortunately, it’s impossible to raise (or lower) the hCG levels naturally during pregnancy because the hormone (hCG) is produced and controlled by the body’s functions.

However, some medically natural resources can directly or indirectly help to boost the healthy function of hCG hormones during pregnancy. They include:

• Maintaining healthy body weight,
• Avoid intense exercise, only moderate,
• Reduce stress or de-stress,
• Medical intervention: always follow the specialist’s guidelines.

Symptoms Of Rising hCG Levels At 4 Weeks

During the first four weeks of pregnancy, hCG levels will typically double up every 2 to 3 days. The standard hCG level at 4 weeks of pregnancy is 5 to 426 mIU/mL. There may be or may not show any symptoms of rising hCG levels at 4 weeks. Most early pregnancy symptoms directly proportional to hCG levels don’t start until about 6 weeks. Some of the possible symptoms may include:

•  Tender, sore, swollen breasts.
• Fatigue due to sudden changes in the hormonal levels (hCG),
• Nausea or vomiting,
• Gas and bloating,
• Cramping,
• Mood swings,
• All these symptoms usually occur due to changes in the levels of pregnancy hormones like hCG, progesterone, prolactin, oxytocin, etc.

Symptoms Of hCG Levels Dropping

The symptoms of  hCG levels dropping can be indicated by the following factors:

• Miscarriage (vaginal bleeding, abdominal cramps, passing tissue or clots, cessation of pregnancy, discharge of white/pink mucus).
• Ectopic pregnancy (fertilized egg remains in the fallopian tube and continues to develop, is a dangerous & life-threatening condition),
• Abdominal pain, with or without vaginal bleeding.
• Possible miscalculation of conception date.
• Death of trophoblastic tissue,
• Blighted ovum.
• pain during intercourse,
• dizziness, or fainting due to internal bleeding.

Conclusions

During the pregnancy periods, in every woman, hCG levels play the most vital functions because it is determined that the changing levels indicate that initial life (embryo) is developing inside the womb. Then hCG protects and helps the embryo to develop, and helps align it in the wall of the uterus.  Therefore, these hormonal changes (higher/lower) can sometimes make you smile (higher than positive pregnancy) or throw you off and make you irritable. But all you need to remember is that due to these hormones, soon enough you will be blessed with a healthy and happy baby.

FAQs

1. What are the symptoms of rising hCG levels?

The most common symptoms of rising Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) levels include positive pregnancy, High concentration of beta hCG, Morning sickness, Fatigue, Dizziness or light-headedness, Breast tenderness, Food cravings, Frequent urination, Feeling emotionally sensitive, and Changes in the sense of smell.

2. Can I increase the hCG levels before or during pregnancy?

Unfortunately, No. The levels of hCG hormones in the body cannot be manipulated by medical or natural resources because hCG is secreted by the placenta in bodily functions and cannot be changed. However, there are some resources like prenatal vitamins, some specific foods, diets, supplements, etc are helpful to optimize the health and activeness of the hCG functions. But always follow the physician’s guidelines.