Pregnancy: How to Manage Morning Sickness

For many women, the toughest part of early pregnancy is morning sickness. You feel sick to your stomach and may vomit. This happens most often in the first 3 months and is caused by pregnancy hormones.

Morning sickness can be very mild—you feel only a little sick to your stomach—or very severe and combined with vomiting. Your symptoms may be worse in the morning, but you can have them at any time of the day or night.

You can take simple and safe steps at home to feel better. These steps include changing what and when you eat and avoiding certain foods and smells. Some women find that acupuncture and acupressure wristbands also help.

What should you do at home?

Food and drink

  • Drink plenty of fluids. If you have kidney, heart, or liver disease and have to limit fluids, talk with your doctor before you increase the amount of fluids you drink. Some women find that peppermint tea helps with nausea.
  • Keep food in your stomach, but not too much at once. Your nausea may be worse if your stomach is empty. Eat five or six small meals a day instead of three large meals.
  • For morning nausea, eat a small snack, such as a couple of crackers or dry biscuits, before you get out of bed. Wait a few minutes, and then get out of bed slowly.
  • Eat more protein, such as chicken, fish, lean meat, beans, nuts, and seeds. Eat less fat.
  • Eat carbohydrate foods, such as potatoes, whole-grain cereals, rice, and pasta.
  • Avoid smells and foods that make you feel nauseated. Spicy or high-fat foods, citrus juice, milk, coffee, and tea with caffeine often make nausea worse.
  • Do not drink alcohol.

Lifestyle tips

  • Get lots of rest. Stress and fatigue can make your morning sickness worse.
  • Do not smoke. Try not to be around others who smoke. If you need help quitting, talk to your doctor about stop-smoking programs and medicines. These can increase your chances of quitting for good.
  • You may want to try acupressure bands. They put pressure on an acupressure point in the wrist. Some women feel better using the bands.

Vitamins

  • Take your prenatal vitamins at night on a full stomach.
  • If you are taking iron supplements, ask your doctor if they are necessary. Iron can make nausea worse.
  • Ask your doctor about vitamin B6 and ginger, both of which are safe, proven ways to relieve symptoms. Try ginger tea and ginger candy. You still may have some nausea or vomiting when taking vitamin B6 or ginger.
    • You can get a healthy amount of vitamin B6 from your regular diet. Sources include fortified breakfast cereals, garbanzo and other beans, meat, poultry, fish, potatoes, and bananas.
    • Talk to your doctor before taking vitamin B6 supplements. High doses of vitamin B6 can be dangerous. The safe upper limit is 100 milligrams a day for adults.
  • If vitamin B6 does not relieve your morning sickness, talk to your doctor about taking medicine to reduce nausea and vomiting during pregnancy.

When should you call for help?

Call your doctor now or seek medical care right away if:

  • You are too sick to your stomach to drink any fluids.
  • You have symptoms of dehydration, such as:
    • Dry eyes and a dry mouth.
    • Passing only a little urine.
    • Feeling thirstier than usual.
  • You have new symptoms such as diarrhea, fever, or belly pain.

Watch closely for changes in your health, and be sure to contact your doctor if:

  • You lose weight.
  • You have ongoing nausea and vomiting.