Oh, the joy of seeing the “+” pink sign on your pregnancy test.

photo from Medical News Today

The excitement and wonderment that ensues!  But then… the lovely gift of pregnancy nausea sets in.  It’s a sure sign of a healthy pregnancy… but still!  Whoever called it “morning sickness” was probably a man. 

Pregnancy caused nausea and vomiting can last from a few days to a few weeks, and for some poor souls, more than a few months.  Pregnancy nausea and/or vomiting affects approximately 75% of pregnant women.

Some effective remedies to curb nausea and vomiting during pregnancy can be a bit strange.  But who cares?  If they work, then you should give them a try.

NIBBLE ON BAKED POTATOES FOR PREGNANCY NAUSEA

Keep a white baked potato on hand, and eat a couple of bites of it every 30 minutes, or whenever you feel nausea coming on.  Feel free to add as much salt as you want.  Use Celtic sea salt, not regular table salt.  Celtic salt is full of natural, essential minerals.  It also tastes better. 

Do not add any kind of fats – no butter or sour cream or oils or fats of any kind.

According to Joy Jones of Dr. Brewer Pregnancy Nutrition, often, nausea in pregnancy is caused by low blood sugar, so getting some potato in every 30 minutes can help to prevent that, and using it when you feel nauseated can help to reverse low blood sugar.

Often an empty stomach early in the morning before getting out of bed can cause intense nausea.  Keep some of that baked potato and salt by your bedside and eat some before you get out of bed.

“SALT SHOTS” CAN PREVENT
VOMITING IN PREGNANCY

Begin taking “salt shots” – Celtic Sea Salt – daily.  Take up to 4 or 5 throughout the day every 4-5 hours.    What is a “salt shot”?  Joy Jones gives the “How to”:  “Salt shots” means putting 1/8 tsp (0.6 ml) of salt on your tongue, then letting it sit there for a few seconds until it’s dissolved, and then washing it down with a little water.

Joy says, ”Sometimes, nausea is caused by a lack of digestive juices in the digestive tract, and so the food just sits there undigested until the body tries to get rid of it, by vomiting it out.  Taking more salt can help your body to make more digestive juices, thus helping digestion to occur more effectively and efficiently, and hopefully decreasing nausea during pregnancy. “

VITAMIN B6 DECREASES PREGNANCY NAUSEA

Take 10mg of vitamin B6.  Don’t take B6 with anything else and begin your day by taking B6 on an empty stomach.  If you can’t handle that, then wait about two hours after you eat to take your B6 for pregnancy nausea.

You can also take it from once a day to every hour or up to every three hours throughout the day.  According to the American Pregnancy Association, B6 has been shown to effectively improve the symptoms of pregnancy nausea.

NON-ALCOHOLIC JAMAICAN GINGER BEER

You can purchase Reed’s Ginger Beer, DG Genuine Jamaican Ginger Beer, Fever-Tree Ginger beer or you can make your own.  All Recipes has a great homemade ginger beer recipe.  You’ll need fresh ginger root, lemons, brown sugar, and white sugar, Brewer’s Yeast, water, and salt.

The trick is to sip on the ginger beer before you eat and right after you eat.  Ginger can enable you to eat and digest your food and not vomit it up.  It’s pretty yummy too.

EAT SMALL MEALS THROUGHOUT THE DAY

Forget about eating “3 square meals”.  You can set your alarm on your phone to go off every 60-90 minutes to remind you to have a snack.  Snacks consist of a handful of almonds, or a piece of string cheese, or peanut butter on celery.  Foods that are high in protein can help keep blood sugar steady.  Pregnancy also requires you to eat 80-100 grams of protein daily – 150 protein grams for twins.  This is an excellent way to get your protein in to fuel your body and feed your growing baby. See my related post:

Pregnancy Snacks- Tips to Eat 80-100grams of Protein Daily

SENSE OF SMELL

The scent of a freshly sliced lemon can ease the feelings of nausea any time during pregnancy.  The scent of peppermint essential oil can also take the edge off nausea.  You can smell it and you can also put a drop on your tongue.  It will give you a nice, fresh breath too.  If you have an essential oil diffuser, the smell can help too.

TAKE NOTE OF WHEN YOUR NAUSEA FLARES AND STAY HYDRATED

You may be able to find a pattern or track certain times of the day or certain smells or habits that trigger your nausea.  Some people find that getting overheated makes them nauseated.  Make sure you drink plenty of water throughout the day.  If you can drink water with electrolytes in it.  You can add electrolytes to your water or drink coconut water.

I hope you start feeling better soon or that some of these tips and remedies get rid of your pregnancy nausea.  Good luck!