Natural Ways to Help You Prevent and Reduce Morning Sickness

Morning sickness is perhaps the most prominent health concern in early pregnancy, especially because you have to be so careful not to use any treatments that might harm the baby. This makes at-home, natural remedies the best course of action for managing your morning sickness and gaining significant relief from nausea and vomiting. Here are the best guidelines for guarding your wellness against nausea and vomiting during pregnancy:

 

1. Gauge the right food level: It’s important to have food in your stomach, but getting the right balance is key. Too much food and you’ll throw it all up, while trying to go through daily life on an empty stomach can make nausea worse. Eating several small meals every day instead of three large meals can help you guard your wellbeing against vomiting and nausea, and keep those stomach food levels right.

 

2. Have breakfast in bed: Whether you keep a small snack ready on your bedside table, or you send your partner downstairs to grab it – after all, you’re doing the tough job here – eating something small before you get out of bed can help to reduce and prevent morning nausea. Take a few minutes to let the snack (such as crackers) digest, and then get out of bed slowly.

 

3. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate: As well as being beneficial to your health and the baby’s, staying hydrated can help beat that first trimester nausea. Water should be your go-to beverage, but you can also try broths, juices and sports hydration drinks to mix things up a little.

 

4. Eat well: Loading up on protein and reducing your intake of fatty foods can work wonders in reducing your first trimester sickness. You might not need me to tell you that you should avoid smells and foods that make you feel nauseated, but in case you don’t want to have to trial and error each one, citrus juice, milk, coffee, and caffeinated tea commonly make nausea worse.

 

5. Get lots of rest: Stress and fatigue can make your morning sickness worse, and they’re doing you or your baby no favours either.

 

6. Give ginger a go: Whether you take ginger as a powder in a capsule, grated fresh into hot water for a tea, or in syrup or crystallized form, regular consumption may help to relieve your morning sickness, although it may take a few days to notice a difference.

 

7. Try acupressure: In acupressure, there are a series of points on your body. The P6 point is located on the inner side of your forearm, one one-sixth of the way between your wrist and elbow and in line with your middle finger. Some women find that acupressure firmly placed on the P6 point relieves their nausea, so speak to a practitioner if you think that’s something that might work for you.

 

8. Talk to your doctor: Many pregnant women take iron supplements to prevent anaemia, but this might not be necessary if you’re getting sufficient iron from other sources, like your diet. Iron can make nausea worse, so ask your doctor if it is necessary for you to take iron supplements. Vitamin B6 and B12, on the other hand, can reduce nausea and vomiting if taken regularly as your doctor advises. Also, certain antihistamines like doxylamine or dimenhydrinate may relieve morning sickness, so you may want to talk to your doctor about those. If you find you are vomiting more than three times a day, are unable to take fluids, and/or have pain, fever or both, you should contact your doctor immediately.

Categories: First Trimester, hydrate hydrate, Iron supplements, Morning, morning sickness, natural remedies, Nausea, nausea worse, nbsp, p6 point, sickness

How to Stop Cancer-Related Nausea from Keeping You Down

There’s no denying that cancer is a major health concern, but what’s less well-known is that it can affect your wellness with nausea. Chemotherapy is the number one cause of nausea in cancer patients, as it releases drugs used to destroy cancer cells which are also toxic to healthy cells in the digestive tract, as well as releasing chemicals into your digestive tract that eventually stimulate the portion of your brain that controls vomiting and nausea. Plus, radiation therapy and other medications similarly affect your wellbeing, as well as the constipation you experience as a result of your cancer treatment. So, how can you prevent cancer-related nausea?

 

1. Nausea medications: As nausea is the number one reason for chemo patients giving up treatment, doctors are often quick to prescribe drugs to prevent nausea and vomiting. These drugs are known as anti-emetics and they regulate your brain chemicals so that you’re less inclined to feel nauseous. Your doctor is likely to give you these drugs before you start chemo, and you may take the treatment for several hours or days after each dose of chemo. Prevention is the best treatment for cancer-related nausea and vomiting, so it’s important to get proactive early on.

 

2. Anxiety medications: According to Redwing Keyssar, the coordinator of a palliative care programme in San Francisco, anxiety can also play a key role in triggering nausea. The reason for this is unknown by wellness experts, but worrying about feeling nauseated can actually make it more likely that you will feel sick, and so this begins a vicious cycle. Keyssar recommends that you speak to your doctor about medication to treat anxiety.

 

3. Alternative approaches: In combination with your anti-nausea medications, treatment by an herbalist specialising in Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) can make a big difference in reducing your instances of nausea and vomiting and strengthening your body to withstand chemotherapy. A recent study, published in the Annals of Oncology, found that CHM helped to significantly reduce nausea among cancer patients treated with CHM.

 

4. Small meals: Your food should be prepared in small, easy-to-serve portions, and you should aim to eat many small meals throughout the day rather than three large ones. Foods that are high in carbs, such as crackers and toast, can help to settle your stomach and move through your digestive system quickly. You might like to keep snacks near your bed so that you can start your day with a few bites. Another good idea is to have jars of nuts, dried fruit, small crackers, and other snacks around the house, and to eat a handful whenever you can manage it.

 

5. Avoid unpleasant smells: Even if you’re in the prime of health, a bad smell can make you feel incredibly nauseas. This feeling becomes magnified when you’re undergoing chemotherapy, so take steps to remove strong odours where possible. Ask the person taking care of you to move the rubbish bins to the garage and put the cat litter downstairs, and park at the curb so you don’t have to smell exhaust in the garage. Food-related smells can also set you off and make it difficult to eat, so stay away from the kitchen – outside in the fresh air, if possible – while food is being prepared. Avoid smelly foods like fish, and keep meals cool as hot foods tend to have a stronger odour.

 

6. Rest after meals: Activity slows your digestion which can make your nausea worse, so take a rest after eating. Don’t lie flat on your back as this can cause nausea and heart burn. Instead, sit up or lie with your back and shoulders propped up with pillows, and wear loose clothing in a cool room with plenty of fresh air.

Categories: cancer, cancer patients, cancer related, chemotherapy, digestive tract, fresh air, Nausea, Nausea and Vomiting, nausea medications, related nausea, small meals

Combating Morning Sickness, One Needle at a Time

One of the downsides to the beautiful process of pregnancy is the discomforting charm-breaker known as morning sickness. Does it always have to be so grim though?

In an interview with now-pregnant pop star Fergie, she announced that she used Chinese Herbal Medicine and Acupuncture to control her morning sickness. As any potential parent may know, morning sickness is characterised by vomiting and nausea – worse still, some things that originally may have smelt or tasted pleasant now seem completely unpleasant!

Modern research has now uncovered that acupuncture on the forearm significantly reduces nausea and vomiting, whilst herbs such as ginger (known as Sheng Jiang in Chinese Medicine) can help to control it.

The treatment is not limited just to pregnancy, but to all kinds of outside-induced nausea, such as chemotherapy, post-operative sickness and more. Discomfort caused from attempts to rid serious ailments is normal, but not a perk when the patient is attempting to recover from their ordeal. The success rate ensured the efficiency of acupuncture and herbal medicine for the control and improvement of vomiting and sickness.

The surprisingly gentle procedure on the forearm (also known as P6) not only benefits people with stomach malfunctions, but also deals with cardiac and chest pain, palpitations, stomach aches, nausea, vomiting, hiccoughs, mental disorders, epilepsy related seizures, fevers and insomnia – and that’s only half of the list!

With nausea being as bad as pain, the acupuncture is a marvel and a relief for those who are in dire need for relief, whether they are expectant mothers or otherwise. For those that are expecting, it is the difference between remaining in bed for nine months or the freedom to enjoy a healthy pregnancy as you walk down the avenue to a happy parenthood.

Well, until the baby starts crying for the fifth time that night.

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Combating Morning Sickness, One Needle at a Time

Categories: chemotherapy, Nausea, postoperative sickness, pregnancy, stomach aches

How to Stop Morning Sickness with Herbs and Acupuncture

With many pregnant celebrities, such as singer Fergie of the Black-Eyed Peas, announcing they use  acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine to control morning sickness, more and more people are becoming interested in this complementary wellness method. But can such an ancient method really help with your nausea and vomiting?

According to modern research from scientists in Baltimore, Maryland and the University of Heidelberg in Germany , acupuncture at a certain point on your forearm, known as point P6, can significantly reduce the nausea and vomiting by which morning sickness is characterised. However, the researchers also looked at other patients who demonstrated these symptoms, caused by postoperative sickness and chemotherapy, as well as pregnancy-related sickness. Though wristwatch electrical stimulators of P6 were not effective, acupressure at P6 showed some results and the researchers recommended continuing investigation of the effectiveness of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) for the treatment of nausea and vomiting.

The acupuncture point P6, also known as Neiguan, translates as “inner pass”. It is the Luo or “connecting” point of the Pericardium channel and the confluent point of the Yin Wei or “Yin Linking” channel. Traditional Chinese Medicinal theory states that this point can be used to calm your heart and spirit, regulate your Qi, and suppress any pain you might be experiencing. Practitioners often recommend the use of P6 if you have cardiac or chest pain, palpitations, stomach aches, nausea, vomiting, hiccups, mental disorders, epilepsy related seizures, fevers or insomnia.

Studies have also shown that Chinese medicinal herbs such as Gan Cao (otherwise known as ginger) are also beneficial in improving wellbeing, especially with regards to sickness and nausea. This is no lightweight matter, as nausea and vomiting can be every bit as serious as pain, and so for expectant mothers, the availability of Chinese medicinal herbs or acupuncture can be the difference between becoming bedridden or hospitalised versus enjoying a healthy pregnancy. They can also make all the difference to the wellbeing of chemotherapy patients, and the quality of life in postoperative patients. If you want to know more about Chinese herbs or acupuncture, or are suffering from one of the conditions listed above, contact an accredited acupuncturist or practitioner of Chinese herbal medicine, or look online for more information.

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How to Stop Morning Sickness with Herbs and Acupuncture

Categories: acupuncture, ginger, Nausea