During pregnancy, dehydration can cause urine to become darker and more concentrated, leading to a yellow or orange color. Dehydration can also increase the risk of urinary tract infections and other complications.
Normally, the color of urine can be light yellow or yellow to transparent. But for a pregnant woman, this change is more prominent and noticeable. The urine color can change from light yellow to dark yellow. It can go to an orange-yellow shade too.
Darker yellow urine is common when you're dehydrated because the urine is more concentrated.” For example, your first pee of the morning tends to be more concentrated and therefore looks darker than it would later on in the day.
Common Changes in Urine During Pregnancy
The color and smell of your urine can change when you're pregnant. If your urine looks darker and more concentrated, it could be a sign that you are dehydrated, per the Cleveland Clinic.
Excess fluids can impact the accuracy of the test results, so if your urine is diluted or pale yellow, hold off on taking a test. Diluted urine tends to also have diluted hCG levels which can skew the test results. Take a test when you naturally need to pee.
A pregnancy test can tell whether you're pregnant by checking a sample of your urine (pee) or blood for a specific hormone. The hormone is called human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). High levels of hCG are a sign of pregnancy.
Bright yellow pee, even as dark as amber, may be harmless, but it could be a sign that you're a little dehydrated or taking more vitamins than your body needs. You may want to check with your provider on what vitamins your body doesn't need as much so you can cut back.
The most common reason for having bright yellow urine is not drinking enough water. Other reasons include the food, medications, or vitamins you may have consumed.
If your pee is bright yellow
The most common culprit is vitamin B2, also known as riboflavin, which is found in most multivitamins. The neon color in pee is just a harmless sign that you're taking more than your body needs, and the excess is mixing with your pee.
During pregnancy, many women experience cravings for foods they would not usually eat. Sudden dietary changes can cause the urine to smell different. Certain foods contain nutrients and vitamins that may cause urine to smell like ammonia.
Use your first morning pee if you can. This is the time of day when your HCG levels will be the most concentrated and easily detected. If you do it at another time of day, try to make sure your pee has been in your bladder for at least three hours.
Pregnancy – During pregnancy, some women will experience enlarged kidneys, resulting in bubbly urine. Also during pregnancy, a woman's kidneys have to filter higher amounts of amino acids. When the amount of amino acids is too much for the kidneys to absorb, protein can escape into the urine, causing it to bubble.
A pregnancy test can find hCG (and give a positive result) in your urine when there is enough in your system. Traces of hCG can be found in your urine from 6 days after the fertilised egg implants in your womb (uterus).
After the formation of the placenta, your body will produce hCG, the levels of which will double every couple of days or so. This will continue to work this way until the 11 th week. Some of these hormones may affect your urine and give it a cloudier appearance.
“Normal urine is pale yellow to amber in color and is clear. Darker urine is often a sign of dehydration. If you notice that your urine is darker than normal and you have no other symptoms, try drinking some more water and see if this helps your urine return to a lighter color,” Alyssa said.
Medium-dark yellow urine is often an indication that you are dehydrated. Drink 2-3 glasses of water now.
Pale straw to a dark yellow color
Urine that falls in the pale yellow category signals that you're healthy and hydrated, says Dr. Bajic. That yellowish color, by the way, is caused by a pigment called urochrome produced by your body.
The first 72 hours of pregnancy symptoms are: late period, positive pregnancy test, implantation bleeding, tiredness, bloating and twinges/cramps.
It appears shortly after the embryo attaches to the wall of the uterus. If you are pregnant, this hormone increases very rapidly. If you have a 28 day menstrual cycle, you can detect hCG in your urine 12-15 days after ovulation.
How soon can I take a pregnancy test? Pregnancy tests work by detecting a certain level of human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG) in your pee. You can take a pregnancy test as soon as you've missed your period. However, it's best to wait at least one week after you've missed your period to get the most accurate results.