Ginger for Morning Sickness

Zingiber officinale

Zingiber officinale (Ginger)

Ginger has been used as a remedy for nausea for thousands of years, and it is extremely effective. Several scientific studies (including double blind controlled studies) support the use of ginger to relieve morning sickness. However, ginger is useful not only for nausea that is the result of morning sickness, but also for nausea stemming from colds and flus, from motion sickness, and from chemotherapy. However, ginger cannot do anything for vertigo, which is typically caused by inner ear problems.

Using Ginger to Stop Morning Sickness

Method

• If the nausea is mild, try drinking a cup of ginger tea.
• For more severe or persistent nausea, take ½ to 1 teaspoon of ginger powder in a glass of water. If the nausea has lasted for several days and is very difficult to throw off, you may need to try taking the ginger powder in water once every 15 minutes until your stomach settles.
• Ginger candy can be helpful if you are traveling and cannot stop to make tea.

Why It Works

Ginger acts on the body in several different ways. First, it contains chemical compounds called phenols, which are present in many plants. Two of the phenols in ginger are gingerols and shogaols, which are gingerols that have lost a water molecule. Gingerols and shogaols stimulate the stomach to move in ways that are normal, rather than in ways that are abnormal. When people feel nauseated, their stomachs actually do lurch violently. Gingerols and shogaols soothe the stomach back into its ordinary rhythmic contractions.

Ginger also contains terpenes, chemicals that have a strong effect on receptors in the nervous system. In this case, the terpenes in ginger stop the hormone serotonin from binding to serotonin receptors in the small intestine. While serotonin in the brain is a “feel good” hormone, in the small intestine it tends to promote nausea and vomiting. By blocking the small intestine’s serotonin receptors, therefore, ginger prevents nausea and vomiting. In fact, the prescription drugs that some people take for nausea do the same thing – they were designed to block serotonin receptors in the intestines.

Ginger also decreases the amount of the hormone vasopressin that is released by the body. Vasopressin, when it is released in large amounts, tends to make people feel sick. But taking ginger alleviates that sensation of nausea, too.

Precautions

Ginger makes some women feel even more nauseated than they did before, because it also has some aspirin-like effects, and, like aspirin, can cause nausea when taken on an empty stomach. It may be best to start slowly.

Ginger is a food herb that is “generally recognized as safe” by the FDA. But pregnant women should not take it in large doses. People who are taking medications should also use caution with ginger, as it interacts with certain drugs, such as blood-thinning medications. Ginger should not be used by women with ulcers, inflammatory bowel disease, blocked intestines, or gallstones.

More Remedies

• Click here for all Morning Sickness remedies