Nausea
Nausea
Nausea is not a disease. From your body’s point of view, it’s not even a problem, really, but a safety mechanism. Nausea usually strikes as a kind of distress signal. If you swallow something that your digestive system doesn’t like or that it even suspects is bad for you, it sends out an alarm through the complex system of nerves that connects your stomach to your brain.
If your body is experiencing other stresses like motion sickness, emotional distress, or even unpleasant sights or odors, your body may again use this distress signal to get your attention and register a problem. And it’s an effective signal. Say what you want about nausea, but it’s certainly hard to ignore.
If you’ve long suffered from problems like motion sickness or the nausea that sometimes accompanies migraine headaches, you’re all too familiar with the conditions that may be your nemesis. But as you leave middle age behind, new causes can crop up.
For people over 60, medication is a common cause of nausea, says Robert Charm, M.D., gastroenterologist and internist in Walnut Creek, California, and professor of gastroenterology and internal medicine at the University of California, Davis. Sometimes, you may simply be sensitive to one type of medicine. Or a combination of different medicines may be interacting to make you ill.
Even if the cause isn’t obvious, there are ways to spot the source of your nausea and ease that queasy feeling whenever it strikes—especially if it’s caused by a motion that your body doesn’t like.
Try This First
Take a break. Your tummy will feel calmer if you rest a bit when a wave of nausea hits. Put your feet up and sit a spell. If you’re in a car, pull over, roll down the window, and get some air. While you’re resting, gaze out the window, says Roger L. Gebhard, M.D., gastroenterologist at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center and professor of medicine in the division of gastroenterology at the University of Minnesota, both in Minneapolis. “People with nausea often feel better if they can look outside and focus on the environment.’’
Other Wise Ways
Change your meal plan. In the midst of a nausea spell, don’t eat anything. Wait a couple of hours in order to give your stomach time to settle, says Dr. Charm.
Give nausea the sip. If you have nausea, sip—don’t gulp—some clear liquid. Flat soda, water, a fluid replacement drink like Gatorade, or some clear broth are all good choices. Take a sip once or twice every five minutes, suggests Dr. Charm. Hydration is especially important if you are also experiencing some vomiting, he says.
Snack a little. If the nausea has passed and you haven’t eaten anything for a couple of hours, then it’s okay to eat something light. Just be sure to make it a low-fat snack of plain foods. Spicy and fatty foods are hard to digest and can make a queasy stomach feel even worse. “Some white rice, toast, or crackers can help,’’ says Martin Brotman, M.D., gastroenterologist at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco.
Swallow some relief. Pepto-Bismol, Mylanta, or other over-the-counter antacids can help calm an unsettled stomach.
For nausea linked with dizziness and motion sickness, take dimenhydrinate (Dramamine). But be aware that anti-motion sickness medicines won’t do much good if the nausea is from a flu or something you ate, says Dr. Brotman.
Chew on some ginger. For a natural nausea reliever, chew candied crystallized ginger, which you can find in natural food stores or the spice aisle of your supermarket.
Or add some fresh ginger to your meals. “Grate the ginger into sauces or food, such as chicken,’’ says Mike Cantwell, M.D., clinician and coordinator for clinical research at the Institute for Health and Healing at the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco. “You can also make ginger tea.’’
Shop for capsules or tinctures. Take one or two ginger capsules three times a day while the nausea lasts, advises Dr. Cantwell. Ginger in capsule form is at its most potent and may offer you a greater medicinal effect.
| Managing Your Meds Nausea is one of the most common adverse reactions to medications. In some cases, the medication irritates the stomach. In others, it may affect the brain directly. Older adults do not tolerate these medications as well as when they were younger. So many drugs can cause nausea that a comprehensive list could probably fill a good-size book on its own, according to W. Steven Pray, Ph.D., R.Ph., professor of nonprescription drug products at Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Weatherford. Even when limited to the most commonly prescribed drugs for seniors, the list can be exhaustive. If you have excessive nausea or queasiness and you’re taking any of these drugs, don’t stop taking them, but do see your doctor, says Dr. Pray. Your doctor may recommend dosing instructions that will ease the discomfort, or he may prescribe a substitute. Just some of those drugs that cause nausea are: • Antiangina drugs such as atenolol (Tenormin) and verapamil (Calan) • Digoxin (Lanoxin), which is prescribed as a heart stimulant in congestive heart failure • Estrogen (Premarin) prescribed for relief of hot flashes and night sweats that are sometimes experienced during menopause • Drugs such as furosemide (Lasix) and thiazide diuretics such as hydrochlorothiazide (HydroDIURIL) that act as diuretics and treat mild cases of high blood pressure • Lisinopril (Zestril) and metoprolol (Lopressor), which are prescribed to control high blood pressure • Warfarin (Coumadin), a blood thinner that is prescribed to prevent clogged arteries |
You can even mix yourself a ginger cocktail with some tincture of ginger, also found at the health food store. Stir 30 drops into a few ounces of water or juice three to four times a day, until the nausea goes away.
Stop the ills with ale. There may not be much, if any, ginger in the soft drink, but it may still help soothe your stomach. “Anything that’s worked in the past or from childhood, like ginger ale, has the added benefit of being comforting and reassuring,’’ says Amy Saltzman, M.D., internist at the Institute for Health and Healing at the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco.
Press here. If your nausea comes from motion sickness, you may be able to relieve it with an acupressure wrist band (Sea-Band), which is specially designed to apply pressure to a pressure point on the inner wrist that can actually help ease nausea. You’ll find these bands in some drugstores and in the sporting goods area of some department stores.
