Nausea

What is nausea?

Nausea is the feeling that you need to vomit (throw up). It can happen for dozens — if not hundreds — of reasons. Whether you vomit depends on factors like how strong your feeling of nausea is and what caused it. And it’s common for people to experience nausea with no other symptoms and without ever vomiting.

Nausea is often protective. It can be your body’s natural response to consuming something toxic or an illness like food poisoning. But nausea can also happen for other reasons that range from unhelpful and unpleasant to disruptive and disabling.

Why do I feel nauseous?

Feeling nauseated (or nauseous) can start from a number of sources. Some common causes of nausea include:

• Autonomic nervous system conditions and issues
• Chronic conditions like cyclic vomiting syndrome
• Motion sickness or vertigo
• Increased pressure on your brain, like from hydrocephalus or brain swelling
• Migraines
• Pregnancy and related concerns, like morning sickness or serious conditions like hyperemesis gravidarum
• Severe pain, like from appendicitis
• Stomach flu or similar conditions
• Stress and anxiety

Multiple body systems and processes can contribute to feeling nauseated, including:

• Your digestive system: Digestive tract conditions, ranging from inflammation to blockages, can often make you feel nauseated after eating.
• Your senses: Your senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch can all influence feeling nauseated.
• Your emotions: Strong feelings can make you feel nauseated.
• Memories and experiences: Thinking about something nauseating from your past may be all it takes for you to feel nauseated again.
• Nerve signals: Nerves outside but near your digestive tract can trigger nausea based on what’s happening around them.
• Chemicals in your blood: Part of your brainstem monitors your blood for any sign of toxins, triggering nausea if it detects them.
• Your brain itself: Pressure on your brain and brain activity disruptions can trigger nausea.

How is nausea treated?

Nausea may be treatable with temporary changes in your routine, especially what and how you eat and drink. Some changes that may help include:

• Avoiding triggers: If certain foods or beverages consistently cause nausea, avoiding them is one of the first things you should try. Foods and beverages that are too hot can be a trigger, too.
• Home remedies: Simple things like eating plain crackers or taking various forms of ginger may help ease your nausea.
• Slowing down when eating and drinking: You may also want to opt for more frequent meals while keeping them smaller.
• Sticking to simpler foods and beverages: Clear liquids and lighter, blander foods are best to avoid making nausea worse. Foods from the BRAT diet can help (but this diet isn’t meant to last more than a couple of days).
• Taking time to digest: Physically pushing yourself too soon after eating can make nausea worse. You should also avoid brushing your teeth too soon after eating, as this can sometimes trigger nausea.

If your nausea is frequent or predictable, you might be able to manage it with antiemetic drugs. That includes over-the-counter (OTC) medications like:

• Dimenhydrinate (Dramamine®, Driminate®, Gravol®)
• Meclizine (Antivert®, Bonine®, Dramamine-N®, Zentrip®)
• Scopolamine patches (Transderm Scop®)

There are also prescription medications. These include, but aren’t limited to, the following:

• Doxylamine succinate (Bonjesta®, Diclegis®)
• Ondansetron (Zofran®)
• Promethazine (Phenergan®)

Medical cannabis also sees use for treating nausea. But this varies depending on where you are and the laws there. A healthcare provider can tell you more about whether this is an option for you.

Remember, just because something’s available over the counter doesn’t mean it’s automatically safe. And OTC remedies are typically not meant for frequent or long-term use.

It’s always best to ask a healthcare professional, like your primary care provider or a pharmacist, for guidance. They can tell you if OTC treatments are safe and how to use them. And they can also tell you if you need professional care or a prescription medicine rather than something available over the counter.

What are the possible complications or risks of not treating nausea?

Nausea usually isn’t dangerous on its own. But when it’s frequent or long-lasting, it can start to disrupt your life. It can lead to issues like dehydration, malnutrition and unexpected weight loss. And if nausea is happening because of another condition, diagnosis and treatment can often stop it before it worsens.

Can nausea be prevented?

Whether nausea is preventable depends on why it’s happening. For example, nausea from car-related motion sickness may be preventable. You might be able to do that either with medication or even just adjusting where you sit in the car. But nausea from other causes may not be preventable.

If you’re experiencing nausea and want to know if it’s preventable, talk to a healthcare provider. They can help you find out the cause of your nausea, whether it’s preventable and what steps you’d need to take to stop it from happening.

When should nausea be treated by a doctor or healthcare provider?

Nausea on its own usually doesn’t need medical care unless it’s severe enough to keep you from getting proper nutrition and hydration. Or if it’s frequent and disrupts your life.