Nausea without Vomiting

Nausea is a feeling of uneasiness and abdominal discomfort with an involuntary (arising by itself) urge to vomit. Nausea is usually followed by a vomit but certain conditions have been recognized where a person experiences nausea without vomiting. Nausea is a very common symptom in a lot of diseases and almost everyone experiences nausea at one point in life.

Let’s get an insight into the causes of nausea without vomiting below:

Causes of Nausea without Vomiting

Doctor should be consulted if you experience severe nausea without vomiting to confirm the cause. But, the cause can also be one of these:

Motion sickness

Did you know that we have balance centers in our ears? These balance centers help us maintain a balance while sitting, standing or moving. Sometimes, repeated movements in different directions like riding a car, motorbike, ship or an airplane can cause an imbalance in this normal mechanism. In such situations, patients usually experience nausea. This may or may not be associated with vomiting.

Treatment

Obviously, the first thing that you can do is avoiding traveling if it bothers you. But, this is not practical and everybody needs to travel. So, here are a few practical solutions:

• You can try sitting on a seat that causes less movement while traveling by a public transport. You can ask for a window seat when you are on an airplane or sit in the center of the boat.
• Keep anti-nausea drugs handy and take a pill preferably half an hour before the start of the journey.

Morning sickness

The good news of welcoming a new member to your family brings this problem to some women in the first trimester. Morning sickness is common among pregnant women. It causes nausea in 70-90% females which is associated with vomiting in only 20-30%. The name suggests that this uneasiness occurs only in the morning but that is not true. In fact, nausea which is mostly without vomiting occurs at any time of the day.

Treatment

There are a number of home remedies for this problem. A few of them are:

• Sipping ginger ale
• Frequent snacking throughout the day
• Having Tulsi water, etc.

If this problem is severe and is associated with vomiting, then it can lead to severe dehydration resulting in hospitalization.

Food poisoning

Nausea with or without vomiting is a common symptom experienced after food poisoning. Eating stale food can lead to many types of infections including bacterial, parasitic or viral infections. These may manifest within a few hours after eating the particular food or even after 24-48 hours. So, it is usually very difficult to trace back the culprit food.

Treatment

• To avoid food poisoning, you should eat fresh food and avoid tinned products
• Do not drink from a packed juice bottle if it appears puffed
• Do not eat any packaged food with froth in it.

If you start experiencing nausea after eating a suspicious food item, then report a doctor and get some antibiotics.

Chronic pancreatitis

Pancreatitis is the inflammation of the pancreases. It is an important organ of your digestive system that secretes many hormones and digestive enzymes. Chronic pancreatitis can be caused by excessive intake of alcohol. It causes nausea without vomiting. It is associated with abdominal pain and other symptoms. Investigations like MRI scans are done to confirm the diagnosis.

Treatment

Such chronic diseases are handled by doctors with the use of prescription drugs. A dietary modification including consumption of more vegetables and fruits helps. Such patients should avoid intake of alcohol.

Addison’s disease

This condition occurs due to the failure of normal functioning of the adrenal glands. It occurs because of low levels of cortisol. Such conditions can occur when you are stressed but your body does not produce enough cortisol. This hormone is known for maintenance of the normal balance of the body functions including the metabolism of the food. Addisonian crisis leads to an imbalance in this metabolism thus, causing nausea which may not be associated with vomiting.

Treatment

This situation requires management with an injection of hydrocortisone. If you or your family member has a history of an adrenal problem, you can keep a home kit ready. But if the home care kit is not available, the patient has to be rushed to the emergency.

Overeating

Many of us experience this problem after having a lot of food at a party. Overeating leads to nausea which may or may not be followed by vomiting. Excess eating is not healthy for a number of reasons. It can lead to weight loss and even shortness of breath. So, all such tempting situations where you might want to eat more than that is required should be avoided.

Smell or odor of certain foods or things

A normal human reaction to certain smells is nausea which is not associated with vomiting. You must have experienced the feeling of uneasiness and abdominal discomfort while passing beside a garbage dump. These situations can be avoided. For those who are very sensitive to such odors, a mask will work if they ever have to be in such a situation. Most people do have to recycle or dump the domestic garbage away; they can do that while wearing a face mask.

Emotional stress or fear

Anxiety and panic attacks usually cause a sudden uneasiness in the stomach. This feeling is certainly followed by an involuntary urge to vomit. This is called nausea. Sudden shocking news or a fear of something can lead to a chain of symptoms leading to a panic attack. This includes nausea which is without vomiting. Other symptoms include chills, shortness of breath, cold clammy extremities and dizziness.

Treatment

The patient can be reassured. If it does not work, they will require some calming medications. Home remedies for such patients include essential oils like chamomile oil, lemon oil and jasmine oil to be massaged on the head at night time for a good night sleep.