Seven Tips for Quieting the Morning Sickness Demons

For the second time in just a few weeks I’ve been approached by a colleague who is battling the morning sickness demons. Since morning sickness affects 50 – 80% of all pregnancies, I figured that it was time to put my fingers to the keyboard and share my favorite morning sickness cures here.

Seven Tips for Quieting the Morning Sickness Demons

1. Eat, drink, and do whatever you can manage…and then try not to stress about it

For almost everyone, morning sickness truly is just a phase, easing up around week 14. The first trimester is just about getting through it, resting well, and trusting your body (and baby) to do their thing. Eat and drink what sounds good and plan to get back to your healthier diet as soon as this passes. Balancing fats (to the degree you can tolerate them), protein, and carbs can be helpful, as can eating small meals frequently. (Check out the end of this post for some info on why fats in particular can be a bit tricky.)

2. Get yourself some ginger

Ginger has been well researched for its anti-nausea affects and can be taken in myriad ways. You can slice up raw ginger and pour hot water over it for instant ginger tea. You can add a bit of the root to any fresh-pressed juice, or you can grate a little into a smoothie. Ginger Chews are a popular and easy ginger delivery system as well. I will say, I’ve also met people (and I’m kind of one of them) who find that ginger brings on stomach upset. If you’re like me, skip ahead to tip number four for a better tea recommendation.

3. Have a before bed snack to keep nighttime hypoglycemia at bay

One of the reasons people can wake up feeling nauseated is because of hypoglycemia that develops overnight. That is why many people, including the non-pregnant, wake up feeling a little icky the morning after a big sugary nighttime snack. To make sure you don’t develop overnight hypoglycemia or wake up too hungry–both of which make matters worse–have a balanced snack right before bed. I like things like full-fat yogurt with honey, cheese and wheat crackers, or a scrambled egg with wheat toast. Again, see what works for you and stick with it until you feel better.

4. Use mint, inside and out

Inside: Try hot or iced mint tea, or mint lemonade. For the tea you can simply pour hot water over fresh mint leaves, steep for a few minutes, and enjoy the brew warm or iced. For the lemonade, start the same way and squeeze in some lemon (or bottled organic lemon juice if it’s easier) and honey or maple syrup. Putting this in a blender with ice can be very refreshing. Add a pinch of good quality salt to make it electrolyte balanced, especially if you’ve been vomiting.

Outside: Try using 100% pure peppermint essential oil (mixed with oil or lotion) or peppermint lotion—put it on your wrists, back of neck, under nose, forehead, ear lobes, anywhere it feels refreshing. I have used peppermint essential oil with every single one of my doula clients during labor, and it is always useful when weariness and nausea kick in.

5. Use the ancient art of acupressure with Sea-Bands

Sea Bands activate the anti-nausea pressure points on the wrist. You can pick these up in most drug stores and they have been clinically proven to decrease nausea. The are available via Amazon.com as well.

6. Take extra B6

You may consider extra B6, which has been shown to help with morning sickness, although no one seems to know why. The typical recommended dose is 10 – 25 mg, three times a day. Check your prenatal vitamin so that you don’t accidentally take too much, but typically the amount in prenatals is much smaller.

7. Eat before getting out of bed

Some people swear by eating a little something before even getting out of bed in the morning. Crackers, dry cereal, and granola are common favorites.

Curious about why morning sickness happens in the first place?

There are a couple of theories. One is that it is a protective measure to ensure that your little one can make all of his or her organs in an environment that is free from toxins. Studies have shown that there are certain foods that disproportionately trigger food aversions in early pregnancy. Those include animal products, caffeinated beverages and foods, and spicy foods–all of which are potentially dangerous to organogenesis (the aforementioned organ making that is taking place in the 1st trimester). Smell aversion is a similarly protective measure to keep mamas-to-be far away from anything that is potentially dangerous. As challenging as morning sickness can be, it is ultimately part of the body’s inherent wisdom designed to keep your baby as healthy as possible.

Another factor likely involved in morning sickness is that the body has a high level of progesterone at this time, and that slows gastric motility– the amount of time it takes things to move through your digestive system. Having food sitting in the stomach churning away, but not moving downstream, is a recipe for the yucks. Because fats induce the slowest gastric emptying time, aka, they hang out in the stomach the longest, some people think that eating fats makes a bad situation worse. That said, I’ve read other reports of people who have only felt better when they switched from low-fat to full-fat dairy, so for this one you’re going to have to do a little experimenting. Since healthy fats are so good for you, you may want to try avocado and coconut oil in smoothies if everything else is a no go.

So there are a few of the reasons behind the morning sickness phenomenon, and some suggestions for how to deal with it. Have any of these tips worked for you? Do you have others to add? I would love to hear from you!