Best foods to ease morning sickness

Women get to experience one of the greatest gifts in the world: giving life. And although the benefits far outweigh the challenges, the pregnancy journey is full of speed bumps. There’s constant aches and pains, body changes, hormones, and everyone’s favorite: morning sickness.

Only a lucky few bypass the dreaded nausea that plagues so many pregnant women. In fact, according to the American Pregnancy Association, 85 percent of pregnant women experience nausea and vomiting, while 60-70 percent actually throw up.

Given morning sickness can last through the whole first trimester, how do you deal with those weeks and weeks of everyday nausea? Well, while there’s no scientific proof that certain foods prevent morning sickness, there are some foods that can help with the overall symptoms.

So, if you’re desperate for some relief, here are the best foods to eat to ease morning sickness.

Ginger

The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology recommends ginger as an aid for settling an upset stomach. How does it work? Ginger helps to stimulate movement in our gastrointestinal tract and the flow of saliva, bile, and gastric secretions. Sounds gross, but in two different trials, 70 percent of women given powdered ginger root four times a day felt that their upset tummy symptoms were significantly improved.

How to get it:

Try drinking flat ginger ale (carbonation can make things worse), eating fresh ginger, drinking ginger tea, or indulging in some ginger candies to help you through those first 14 weeks.

Lemons

In some cases, the smell of lemon is enough to ease morning sickness symptoms. A trial consisting of 100 pregnant women found that nausea and vomiting intensity significantly decreased for women who inhaled lemon essential oil. Additionally, the National Cancer Institute suggests sucking on sour lemon candies as a way to curb nausea.

How to get it:

Try adding lemon to your water, sucking on sour citrus candies, or adding a little lemon essential oil to your room diffuser.

Peppermint

Another food that can ease morning sickness is peppermint. For years, peppermint has been used to treat nausea and symptoms of morning sickness. And honestly, does anything smell and taste as fresh as peppermint?

How to get it:

Keep nausea away by sipping on peppermint tea (this one has ginger, lemongrass, and peppermint!), rubbing on a salve with peppermint essential oils, or sucking on peppermint candies.

Vitamin B6

Various studies have found Vitamin B6 to be an effective aide in morning sickness relief. In 2014, a group of pregnant women was given vitamin B6 and found that it significantly reduced nausea and vomiting.

How to get it:

Vitamin B6 is something you can take every day as a supplement, but you can also get it from food sources like fish, potatoes, non-citrus fruit, and nutritional yeast. Does the idea of eating a meal or swallowing a supplement make you feel even worse? Try these nausea drops – they have ginger and Vitamin B6 in them.

High carbohydrates

You may have heard that if you feel like throwing up, you should nibble on saltine crackers. Well, there’s not much scientific research to back this up, but there are plenty of women who swear that bland, high-carb foods like breads, crackers, and cereals can ease nausea. These foods usually don’t have an overpowering flavor to upset your tummy, which makes them easier to stomach when you’re not feeling well.

High-fiber carbs can pull double duty against morning sickness symptoms by giving you something bland to munch on while keeping your stomach fuller, longer. (More often than not, a full stomach can prevent queasy stomach in those early weeks of pregnancy. )

How to get it:

Scrap your low-carb mentality and munch on bagels, croissants, crackers, and, personal fav: Goldfish. For high-fiber carbs, add lentils, chickpeas, and beans to your meal plan.

High protein

While salty carbs are a go-to when we feel like vomiting, there’s evidence to suggest that a high protein diet works better. A recent study found that women who consumed a diet high in protein during their first trimester experienced less nausea and vomiting.

How to get it:

You can try lean proteins like chicken, but keep in mind that the look, smell, and texture of certain meats may gross you out like never before. If so, try plant-based proteins like beans, lentils, and edamame.

These foods get honorable mention for morning sickness relief

If you’ve tried the above foods and they aren’t easing symptoms, the following foods have also been found to ease morning sickness. Keep these in your refrigerator or cupboard so you can call on them when you need them:

• Jello
• Herbal teas (check with your provider before drinking herbal teas)
• Potato chips
• Pretzels
• Protein bars
• Toast
• Yogurt
• Sorbet

You can also give this Nausea Relief Bundle a try. It includes our best-selling nausea relief products all in one!

Just remember, there’s an exceptionally bright light at the end of the pregnancy tunnel. Once you’re past the first trimester, the morning sickness usually subsides for most women. And although pregnancy is a challenging journey full of body changes, it’s all worth it when you see and hold your beautiful baby. So, hang in there!