Do I need to limit fluids during delivery of your baby?

There's no need to limit fluids during labor, though hospitals do like to restrict them because vomiting during labor in certain positions is very common, and anesthesiologists fear aspiration. Women actually do better when they're hydrated. Please, though, no red Kool-Aid or Hawaiian Punch. Hospital staff prefer you stick to clear fluids; after all, somebody else does have to do the dirty work if you get nauseous during labor. By the way, OB anesthesiologists consider pregnant women to always have a full stomach; that's because it takes longer for them to empty their stomachs. So orders of not eating during labor are common sense.