What is the best thing to eat for nausea and vomiting?

October 18, 2025 •

5 min read

Approximately 50% of adults experience nausea at some point each year. When an upset stomach strikes, knowing what is the best thing to eat for nausea and vomiting can make a significant difference in your comfort and recovery, focusing on gentle, bland foods and adequate hydration to settle your digestive system.

Quick Summary

Managing an upset stomach requires focusing on bland, easily digestible foods, incorporating soothing options like ginger, and maintaining hydration with clear fluids. It is best to consume small, frequent amounts while avoiding greasy and spicy meals. Cold foods often have less odor and can be more palatable during queasiness.

Key Points

Start with Clear Liquids: After vomiting, begin with small sips of water, broth, or electrolyte drinks to rehydrate the body slowly and prevent dehydration.
Embrace Bland Foods: Transition to the BRAT diet (bananas, rice, applesauce, toast) and other simple starches like crackers or boiled potatoes to soothe the stomach and provide gentle energy.
Use Real Ginger for Relief: Ginger has proven anti-nausea properties and can be consumed as tea, candies, or fresh root. Avoid commercial ginger ale, which typically contains minimal real ginger.
Choose Cold Foods: Cold foods and drinks often have less odor and can be better tolerated than hot meals. Options include popsicles, chilled fruits, and gelatin.
Eat Small, Frequent Meals: Prevent stomach overload by eating small, regular portions throughout the day rather than a few large ones.
Avoid Trigger Foods: Stay away from greasy, spicy, fatty, very sweet, or strong-smelling foods, as these can easily upset your sensitive stomach.
Sit Upright After Eating: Remain in a slightly reclined or sitting position for at least 30 minutes after eating to aid digestion and reduce discomfort.

Feeling sick to your stomach is a common and unpleasant experience, whether it's due to a stomach virus, morning sickness, or other health issues. When your body is trying to purge itself, eating can feel like the last thing you want to do. However, staying nourished and hydrated is crucial for a faster recovery. The key is to choose foods that are easy on your digestive system, provide some energy, and don't trigger further distress.

The Initial Approach: Rest and Rehydration

When nausea and vomiting are at their peak, the best strategy is often to give your stomach a rest. After a vomiting episode, wait for an hour or two before trying to consume anything. The primary goal is to rehydrate your body by replacing the fluids and electrolytes lost.

Clear Liquids: Start with small sips of clear fluids, such as water, apple juice, grape juice, or clear broths. Sucking on ice chips or popsicles can also be effective for replenishing fluids slowly.
Oral Rehydration Solutions: Electrolyte-rich drinks, including oral rehydration solutions or sports drinks, are excellent for restoring lost minerals, which is especially important if you have had significant vomiting or diarrhea.
Avoid Irritants: Steer clear of very sweet, caffeinated, or high-fat beverages, which can worsen nausea.

When to Reintroduce Solids: The BRAT Diet and Beyond

Once clear liquids are tolerated, you can begin easing back into solid foods. For a long time, the BRAT diet was the standard recommendation. It consists of bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast. These foods are bland, low in fat and fiber, and easy to digest, which makes them gentle on an upset stomach. While useful for short-term recovery, this diet is not nutritionally complete for long periods. Today, health experts recommend a broader bland diet that includes more nutrients as soon as they can be tolerated.

Plain Starches: Crackers, pretzels, boiled potatoes, and plain noodles are easily digestible starchy options. The carbohydrates can help absorb stomach acids and settle your stomach.
Easy-to-Digest Protein: Once you can handle bland starches, add simple protein sources like baked or boiled skinless chicken, hard-boiled eggs, or low-fat Greek yogurt.
Cold Foods: Many people find that cold foods are easier to tolerate than hot ones, as they have less aroma. Consider items like gelatin, popsicles, chilled fruits, and custard.

Leveraging Natural Remedies

Nature offers several powerful tools for combating nausea, and some have been used for centuries with good reason.

Ginger: This root is a well-researched remedy for nausea and is effective for many causes, including morning sickness, motion sickness, and chemotherapy-induced nausea. You can consume it as a tea made from fresh ginger, as crystallized ginger, or in ginger candies. Be aware that most commercial ginger ale contains little to no actual ginger, so it's not a reliable source for its medicinal properties.
Peppermint: The aroma and flavor of peppermint can be soothing. Peppermint tea is a popular choice, and some find relief from sucking on peppermint candies or mints.
Lemon: The refreshing scent of lemon is known to help alleviate nausea. Try adding a slice of lemon to water or sniffing a freshly cut lemon to calm your stomach.

Strategic Eating and Drinking Techniques

How you eat is as important as what you eat when you are feeling nauseous.

Eat Small, Frequent Meals: Instead of three large meals, try eating smaller portions every one to two hours. This prevents your stomach from becoming too full, which can exacerbate nausea.
Sip Liquids Slowly: Drinking large amounts of liquid at once can overwhelm your stomach. Sip clear fluids slowly throughout the day to stay hydrated without triggering more vomiting.
Separate Solids and Liquids: Some people find it helpful to drink liquids a half-hour before or after eating, rather than with a meal.
Sit Upright: Avoid lying down for at least 30 to 60 minutes after eating. Remaining in an upright position helps with digestion and reduces the risk of heartburn and nausea.

Comparison of Foods for Nausea Relief


Food/Drink	Best For	Primary Benefit	Potential Drawbacks
Crackers & Toast	Empty stomach nausea	Absorbs stomach acid, easy digestion	Low nutritional value, not for long-term use
Bananas	Replenishing electrolytes	Rich in potassium, soft, easy to eat	Can be gassy if eaten too quickly
Applesauce	Soothing and hydrating	Gentle on stomach, source of pectin	Can be high in sugar if sweetened
Ginger Tea	Actively combating nausea	Bioactive anti-nausea compounds	Can cause heartburn in high doses
Clear Broth	Hydration and electrolyte balance	Provides fluids, sodium, and nutrients	Can be high in sodium, check labels
Popsicles / Jell-O	Hydration when unable to drink	Fluid and sugar for energy	Limited nutrients, high sugar in some varieties
Baked Chicken	Protein reintroduction	Source of lean protein for energy	Only for later stages of recovery, must be bland

Conclusion

When nausea and vomiting strike, the most important thing to focus on is hydration, starting with clear liquids and slowly progressing to bland, easily digestible foods. Natural remedies like ginger and peppermint can provide significant relief for many people. By employing strategies like eating small, frequent meals and avoiding trigger foods such as greasy or spicy dishes, you can help soothe your stomach and support your body's recovery. If symptoms are severe or persistent, it is essential to contact a health care professional for proper guidance to prevent complications like dehydration. For further reading on managing nutrition during illness, you can visit a reliable source like Healthline to explore other options.

Foods and Drinks to Avoid

While knowing what to eat is important, being aware of what to avoid is equally crucial to prevent irritating your stomach further.

Greasy and Fried Foods: High-fat foods are difficult and slow to digest, which can worsen nausea.
Spicy Foods: Spices can irritate the digestive tract.
Very Sweet Foods: High-sugar items, including candy, pastries, and some juices, can upset your stomach.
Strong-Smelling Foods: The powerful aroma of certain foods can trigger a gag reflex. Opt for less odorous options, especially cold ones.
Acidic Foods: Citrus fruits, tomatoes, and tomato-based products can sometimes exacerbate an upset stomach.
Caffeine and Alcohol: Both can worsen dehydration and further irritate your system.

When to See a Doctor

While most cases of nausea and vomiting resolve on their own, you should seek medical attention if:

Symptoms last longer than 24-48 hours.
You show signs of dehydration (e.g., dark urine, dry mouth).
There is blood in your vomit.
Vomiting is accompanied by fever, severe abdominal pain, or a stiff neck.

Final Thoughts on Nausea Management

Managing nausea and vomiting through nutrition is a gradual process. Patience is key. Listen to your body and introduce foods and liquids slowly. Focus on hydration first, then move to bland foods, and eventually reintroduce other nutrients as you feel better. The right dietary choices can make a significant difference in your comfort and speed up your recovery time.

Frequently Asked Questions

The BRAT diet (Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast) is still considered a viable short-term strategy for soothing an upset stomach because the foods are bland and easy to digest. However, its restrictive nature means it's not recommended for long-term use, and a wider bland diet is often suggested.

Despite its reputation, most commercial ginger ale contains very little real ginger and a lot of sugar, so it is not a potent anti-nausea remedy. The mild relief often comes from the carbonation or a placebo effect. For actual ginger benefits, opt for ginger tea or candies with real ginger.

To rehydrate safely after vomiting, you should wait for your stomach to settle for an hour or two. Then, start by sipping small amounts of clear liquids like water, clear broths, diluted apple juice, or oral rehydration solutions. Sucking on ice chips can also be effective.

Cold foods tend to have less odor than hot foods. Since strong smells can trigger or worsen nausea for some people, the reduced aroma of cold options like popsicles, gelatin, or chilled fruits makes them more palatable.

Once you can tolerate bland starches, you can introduce lean, easy-to-digest protein sources. Examples include baked or broiled skinless chicken, hard-boiled eggs, and low-fat Greek yogurt.

It's important to keep something in your stomach, as an empty stomach can sometimes worsen nausea. Focus on small, frequent meals of bland foods rather than large ones. Don't force yourself to eat if you can't, but small portions may help.

You should seek medical attention if vomiting lasts for more than 48 hours in an adult or 24 hours in a child, or if it's accompanied by signs of dehydration, fever, severe pain, or bloody vomit.