Nausea: Symptoms and causes

The uncomfortable urge to vomit and the queasiness in stomach is what we name nausea. It may lead to vomiting. You may experience nausea as part of gastrointestinal tract (GI tract) infection, motion sickness, food poisoning, and also this is common in early days of pregnancy. Sometime, this happens as side effect of chemotherapy or some medications.

The signs and symptoms

The uneasy sensation in nausea comes with upset digestion, anxiety and dizziness. The urge to puke up is controlled by brain. Sometimes, this may lead to vomiting, which is good as it relieves the uncomfortable stomach.

The general signs are:

• An uneasy feeling in stomach
• Dizziness
• Vomiting
• Headache
• Abdominal cramps
• Diarrhea

Vomiting is when the stomach throws out what we have eaten. Nausea and vomiting both lead to dehydration and general feeling of weakness. If the vomiting continues even after the liquid are out of stomach, this is now named as dry heaves. Dehydration can be severe and problematic if not dealt in time.

The common causes of nausea

The stomach is vital part of digestive system in human body. It contains hydrochloric acid and certain enzymes which digest the food entering the stomach. Then the digested food is passed on the intestine for further processes. However, if the stomach is upset due to some infection pr food poisoning, it tries to push the food out. Moreover, the emotional stress in brain generates signals and the overall process of digestion get disturbed. This is when nausea and later vomiting occurs.

There are various reasons which cause nausea. Some of these are:

• Food poisoning
• Viral infection
• Motion sickness (people tend to feel nausea while travelling in a plan or even bus)
• Head injuries
• Brain tumor
• Stomach infection
• After effects of anesthesia
• After chemotherapy session
• Migraine
• Alcohol and drugs use
• Morning sickness in pregnant women often causes nausea
• Side effects of some new medicine

Vomiting and nausea leads to dehydration, weakness in body, and as well as minerals deficiency. Therefore, you should contact your doctor if you frequently have such queasiness.

How to get rid of nausea?

To help yourself to get rid of that uncomfortable and quite nasty feeling, here are some tips you should be aware of:

1. Divert your attention

Many times treating or managing nausea is not that difficult. Just divert your attention because the more you think, the worse it will get. Therefore, reading a book or watching movie etc may help you to get over it.

2. Staying hydrated in the key

Drinking enough of water in daily routine is the key to healthy body. Staying hydrated also helps you to prevent this uneasy feeling of nausea. However, drinking too much when you are nauseated is the bad option as it will fill the stomach. And you will end up vomiting it out.

3. Try herbal formula

Chamomile, green tea, ginger all are popular home based remedies to cure nausea and much more. The herbal ingredients relieve the uneasy stomach and nausea as well. Similarly, ginger and honey make a soothing herbal blend and sipping it as warm herbal tea is great for nausea and vomiting.

4. A little bit of tart

Lemon and oranges are acidic in taste. Their sour taste is because of that citric acid in them. Sour taste such as lemon or orange juice is popular for curing nausea. Even this home based cure is medically proven. The antioxidants and acidic contents help one to get over nausea.

5. Breath in open air

When you feel nauseated, breath deep. Go out in fresh air.  If you are travelling by road, open up the window to allow fresh air through. This is effective because you may be nauseated because of congested room.

Some further tips whenever you feel nauseated are:

• Sit up straight and don’t curl as it will press your stomach
• Take deep breaths
• Open a window or go in fresh air
• Things to avoid
• Avoid use of drugs and alcohol
• Too much carbonated soft drinks
• Energy drinks
• Too much caffeine
• Skipping meals
• Too much unnecessary medicines

Bottom line

Nausea is not only queasiness but it can also lead to severe dehydration. Especially for children this problem can get worse. Therefore, it’s wise to be aware of some tips to cure and relieve it. Moreover, if such tips are not working and you frequently feel nausea and vomiting, you should take your doctor’s advice for proper medication and treatment.