Nausea and vomiting during pregnancy

While nausea and vomiting is an almost normal part of pregnancy, it is unpleasant and in rare cases can lead to serious complications such as dehydration. Sometimes all that is required to improve your symptoms is to make some changes to the way you eat and drink. Sometimes medications are required, and it’s important to know which ones you can safely take during pregnancy.

Hydration

The most important thing is to ensure adequate fluid intake. You should drink at least 2000ml of fluid a day in addition to replacing fluid lost from vomiting. Fluid tends to be best tolerated when it is cold and drunk in frequent small amounts (sips) between meals (this avoids over-filling your stomach). If you are drinking enough fluid, you will urinate normal volumes and it should be clear or yellow.

If you aren’t passing much urine or if it is becoming concentrated, this is a sign you are dehydrated. Try to increase the amount you are drinking. Water is the best fluid, or otherwise rehydration drinks from a pharmacy, such as Gastrolyte (it is easier for your stomach to absorb and contains important electrolytes). If you feel you are dehydrated and unable to keep fluid down, contact my rooms on (03) 9418 8299 or Freemasons Maternity on (03) 9418 8302 for advice, or alternatively attend the Epworth Richmond Emergency Department.

Controlling Nausea

Diet

Meals should be eaten slowly and in small amounts every one to two hours. An empty stomach should be avoided, as should an over-full stomach. A snack upon waking and before getting up may help.

It’s difficult to be sure what foods are best; however, historically simple foods like toast and crackers are most tolerable when nausea is at its worst. Everyone is different, so you might have to experiment. Try avoiding spicy, odorous, high fat, acidic and very sweet foods first and replace with higher protein and salty foods like nuts.

Medications

Blackmore’s Morning Sickness
This contains ginger and vitamin B6 and should be taken regularly (4 times a day) to suppress your nausea. If you only take it when you have severe nausea, it probably won’t work. If you don’t like the ginger, you could instead take vitamin B6 50mg tablets 4 times a day.

If this doesn’t provide adequate relief, there are some other medications you can try. However, these are either pharmacist-only medications (only available behind the counter at a pharmacy after consulting with a pharmacist) OR require a prescription. Advertising regulations prevent me from naming these kinds of medications here, but I can provide you with more details during your appointment.

Contact my rooms on (03) 9418 8299 if you would like to understand what other options exist and/or need a script.

When to seek further help

If the above measures are not working and you are still troubled by significant symptoms, you should make an appointment with me by calling (03) 9418 8299 or booking online. Don’t worry – there are plenty more options available.

You should go to hospital if you are unable to tolerate any fluids or if you are not passing enough urine.

Nausea and vomiting late in the pregnancy is not normal, and you should contact my rooms if this occurs.

Prognosis

The vast majority of women’s symptoms resolve by about 12–13 weeks, and at the very least, you can expect symptoms to begin to subside by this stage.