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What to Eat When Nauseous: 14 Best Foods and Drinks

Those with nausea tend to tolerate certain foods and drinks better than others. Discover the 14 best foods and drinks to help ease nausea and keep you nourished when feeling unwell.

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What to Eat When Nauseous: 14 Best Foods & Drinks
Last updated on February 4, 2026, and last reviewed by an expert on February 2, 2026.

Nausea is the unpleasant sensation of needing to vomit. It’s surprisingly common, affecting about 50% of adults at some point each year.

What to Eat When Nauseous: 14 Best Foods & Drinks

The term comes from the Greek word “naus,” meaning ship — a nod to its early association with seasickness.

Nausea starts in the brain, where emotional, cognitive, or chemical triggers stimulate your nervous system. This affects stomach muscle function and creates that queasy feeling.

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Many things can trigger nausea: infections, surgery, digestive conditions, medications, cancer treatment, hormonal changes, pregnancy, or food intolerances.

Though eating can be hard when you feel sick, food and drinks are important for staying hydrated, replacing lost electrolytes, and helping your stomach settle.

Here are the 14 best foods and drinks for when you’re feeling nauseous.

1. Ginger

Ginger has a long history as a remedy for stomach problems in traditional medicine.

It contains bioactive compounds like gingerol, paradol, and shogaol that interact with your central nervous system and stomach to reduce nausea symptoms.

Research supports ginger’s effectiveness. A systematic review found that ginger supplementation significantly improved nausea related to pregnancy and motion sickness, with effects similar to some antiemetic drugs.1

For chemotherapy-induced nausea, meta-analyses show that taking at least 1 gram of ginger daily for three or more days reduced acute vomiting by about 60%.2

Ginger also appears safe and effective for morning sickness during pregnancy. One meta-analysis found it significantly relieved nausea symptoms compared to placebo without posing risks for adverse events.3

Most studies use 0.5–1.5 grams of dried ginger root daily. You can consume ginger as tea, biscuits, crystallized ginger, or capsules. Some products may not contain enough ginger to be effective, so check the amounts.

Summary: Consuming 0.5–1.5 grams of ginger root per day is effective at treating nausea from motion sickness, surgery, chemotherapy, and pregnancy.

2. Water and Clear Beverages

When you’re nauseous, you might not want to eat at all. But staying hydrated is essential, especially if you’ve been vomiting or have a fever.

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Suggested read: 17 Foods and Drinks to Eat When You Have the Stomach Flu

Water is always good, but if you’ve been throwing up or have diarrhea, you’ll also need to replace lost electrolytes.

Good drinks for fighting dehydration and nausea include:

Very sweet, caffeinated, or dairy-based drinks may worsen nausea, so consider avoiding them.

Sipping cold drinks throughout the day is often easier than drinking a lot at once, especially if you’ve been vomiting.

Summary: Staying hydrated is important when you’re ill. Clear, cold beverages like water, oral rehydration solutions, iced tea, juice, sports drinks, and coconut water can be sipped throughout the day.

3–5. Crackers, Pretzels, and Toast

Dry foods like crackers, pretzels, toast, and cereals are often recommended for nausea. One study found that nearly 90% of gynecologists recommend soda crackers to women with morning sickness.

The exact reason people tolerate dry, plain foods better when nauseous isn’t fully understood.

However, an empty stomach can worsen nausea, and strong-smelling foods often make it worse. That’s why it’s best to avoid cooking when you’re sick — the sight and smell of food can trigger nausea.

Crackers, pretzels, toast, and cereals require little preparation, have no strong odor, and can help settle an empty stomach.

Suggested read: 6 Teas That Help Treat Nausea Naturally

Summary: An empty stomach and strong-smelling foods can trigger or worsen nausea. Crackers and other plain, dry foods may help settle your stomach.

6. Cold Foods

When you’re sick, cold foods are often easier to tolerate than warm dishes because they generally have weaker odors.

Aversion to smells is particularly common during pregnancy. One study found that 41% of pregnant women experienced food smell aversion and were more likely to have nausea.

Good cold food options include Jell-o, ice cream, chilled fruits, yogurt, custard, and frozen popsicles.

If nausea makes it hard to keep food down, simply sucking on an ice cube can help. This is also a good way to slowly rehydrate.

Summary: Food smells can trigger nausea. Cold foods like popsicles, Jell-o, chilled fruits, and ice cream produce less odor and are often better tolerated.

7. Broths

Chicken broth and chicken soup are classic home remedies for everything from headaches to colds to fevers.

When you’re nauseous, liquids are often easier to tolerate than solid food. Broths and soups can be a good first step toward eating again. They also provide hydration and electrolytes, which is important if you’ve been vomiting or had a fever.

One cup (240 ml) of chicken broth contains about 16% of the daily recommended sodium, 8% of potassium, and 8% of niacin.

If you’re up to it, adding chicken or vegetables provides extra calories, protein, vitamins, and minerals to help your body recover.

If your nausea is caused by congestion or a cold, hot broth can help clear your nose.

Summary: Broths and soups provide hydration and electrolytes. They’re a good first step toward eating solid foods again when you’re nauseous or have been vomiting.

8. Bananas

When you’re sick and nauseous, eating large amounts can be difficult.

Suggested read: The 15 Best Foods to Eat When You’re Sick

The foods you do manage to eat should be nutritious and provide energy for recovery. This is especially important if your nausea is due to a chronic condition and you’re struggling to maintain weight.

Bananas are a nutritious, energy-dense snack that’s easy to eat when you’re sick.

They also help replace potassium lost through vomiting or diarrhea.

One medium banana contains about 105 calories, 27 grams of carbs, 12% of your daily potassium needs, and 22% of vitamin B6.

Other soft, energy-dense foods include avocados, porridge, stewed fruits, mashed potatoes, and peanut butter.

Summary: Bananas provide energy and vitamins when you’re nauseous and help replace potassium lost from vomiting or diarrhea.

9. Applesauce

Applesauce is popular for people with nausea or diarrhea.

It’s part of the BRAT diet — bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast.

This diet used to be routinely recommended for upset stomachs, especially in children. While it’s now considered too restrictive for prolonged use, many people still find these foods helpful.

One study on chemotherapy patients found that a light, bland diet including applesauce, cottage cheese, and vanilla ice cream improved food intake and reduced nausea and vomiting.

Applesauce provides carbs and is gentle on the stomach. Half a cup (122 grams) of unsweetened applesauce contains about 50 calories and 14 grams of carbs.

It’s also high in pectin, a dietary fiber that may help if you’re experiencing diarrhea along with nausea.

Summary: Applesauce is commonly used by people with nausea and diarrhea. It provides energy and carbs and is usually well tolerated when you’re feeling sick.

10–12. Rice, Potatoes, and Noodles

Starchy, plain foods like rice, potatoes, and noodles are good options when you’re nauseous.

They’re easy to prepare, provide calories, and help settle your stomach.

Bland, colorless, and odorless foods are often easier to tolerate because they trigger nausea less than strongly flavored foods.

Rice can be boiled or steamed and eaten plain or with light seasoning. It can also be eaten cold if hot foods are unappealing.

Potatoes can be boiled, steamed, baked, or mashed with a little butter and milk for extra calories.

Noodles can be boiled and eaten plain or added to a light broth to increase fluid intake.

Suggested read: The 12 Best Foods for an Upset Stomach: Natural Remedies

Summary: Bland, starchy foods are good choices when you’re nauseous. They’re mild in taste and smell and provide calories and comfort.

13. Protein-Rich Meals

Research shows that protein-rich meals may help reduce nausea better than carb- or fat-heavy meals.

One study in pregnant women found that protein-rich meals significantly reduced nausea symptoms compared to carb- or fat-rich meals.4

In motion sickness research, participants given a protein-rich beverage before being spun in a rotating drum had less nausea than those given carb-rich drinks. The protein meals were most effective at suppressing both gastric disturbances and the full range of motion sickness symptoms.5

The theory is that protein helps normalize stomach activity by increasing secretion of the hormone gastrin.4

Protein-rich meals are especially important for people with chronic nausea from illness, as protein helps maintain strength and prevents malnutrition.

Summary: Protein-rich meals may reduce nausea better than high-carb or high-fat meals. Protein may help normalize stomach activity by increasing gastrin secretion.

14. Herbal Tea

Herbal tea is commonly used as a remedy for nausea. One study found that about 22% of gynecologists recommend it to pregnant women experiencing nausea.

The scientific evidence is mostly on specific compounds in capsule or aromatherapy form rather than tea.

Peppermint aromatherapy has been found to reduce nausea in women after cesarean sections, suggesting it may be a useful treatment for postoperative nausea.6 Chamomile capsules and lemon scent have shown similar effects in pregnant women.

Despite limited evidence for teas specifically, many people with nausea find herbal teas soothing and well tolerated.

A cup of peppermint tea or hot water with lemon may ease your nausea. Even if the herbs themselves don’t have strong effects, the fluids help with hydration when you’re sick.

17 Home Remedies to Naturally Get Rid of Nausea
Suggested read: 17 Home Remedies to Naturally Get Rid of Nausea

Summary: Peppermint and chamomile have been found to reduce nausea in capsule or aromatherapy form. Herbal teas are soothing and provide hydration, though more research is needed on their direct effects.

Other Tips for Treating Nausea

Besides eating certain foods, other steps can help relieve nausea:

Also avoid these foods when you feel nauseous:

Summary: Avoid certain foods, eat small regular meals, consume liquids and solids separately, sit up after eating, and keep your mouth fresh to help manage nausea.

Summary

Nausea is unpleasant and can make eating and drinking difficult.

People with nausea often tolerate bland rice, pasta, potatoes, salty crackers, and cold foods better than other options.

Some foods may even help reduce symptoms, including ginger, certain teas, and protein-rich meals.

The most important thing when you’re sick is staying hydrated by drinking plenty of water and electrolyte-rich fluids.

By choosing the right foods, you can stay nourished while you recover.

  1. Becker A, et al. Systematic review of the effect of dried ginger powder on improvement of nausea and vomiting associated with early pregnancy or motion sickness. Phytother Res. 2014;28(8):1137-1145. PubMed ↩︎

  2. Crichton M, et al. Effects of Ginger Intake on Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting: A Systematic Review of Randomized Clinical Trials. Nutrients. 2022;14(23):4982. PubMed ↩︎

  3. Viljoen E, et al. A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effect and safety of ginger in the treatment of pregnancy-associated nausea and vomiting. Nutr J. 2014;13:20. PubMed ↩︎

  4. Jednak MA, et al. Protein meals reduce nausea and gastric slow wave dysrhythmic activity in first trimester pregnancy. Am J Physiol. 1999;277(4):G855-861. PubMed ↩︎ ↩︎

  5. Levine ME, et al. Protein-predominant meals inhibit the development of gastric tachyarrhythmia, nausea and the symptoms of motion sickness. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2004;19(5):583-590. PubMed ↩︎

  6. Lane B, et al. Examination of the effectiveness of peppermint aromatherapy on nausea in women post C-section. J Holist Nurs. 2012;30(2):90-104. PubMed ↩︎

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