High Heart Rate in Pregnancy: Causes, Risks & When to Worry

Question
I am 17 weeks pregnant and my heart rate had reached about 140 bpm and it stayed like this for about 12 hours or so before going down to around 105. I was wondering if I should have gone into Emergency. Is this normal? Will this high heart rate affect my baby in anyway? in its development?

Answer
Hi Monika,

On average during pregnancy the heart rate goes around 90 beats per minute. Any change from a normal heart rate should be reported to your doctor. However unless it is associated with chest pain, hard breathing or uncontrollable sweats then it is usually just your hormones and your body working harder to get blood to your baby. It will not affect your baby in any way.