Are Supplements Safe During Pregnancy? 11/05/09

Ginger Use During Nausea and Vomiting In Pregnancy

During pregnancy and breast feeding a woman should go off of all supplements she was taking previously and supplement with a Prenatal Vitamin supplement only, as recommended by her attending physician

There is also an argument for the use of a supplement containing flaxseed oil, fish oil and borage seed oil, to provide essential fatty acids required for brain development of the fetus and the breast feeding infant. In this case, 3 capsules of Adeeva Nature’s Essential Oils, per day, should be considered. But approval from your physician is mandatory.

Ginger has long been used as an anti-emetic because it soothes the stomach and through different mechanisms helps to reduce nausea and vomiting in people with motion sickness and other problems that promote nausea and vomiting.

As such, over the years ginger has been taken by pregnant women who experience morning sickness or nausea and vomiting through the day. Studies have shown success with this application.

The recent study by G. Ozgoli and fellow researchers (March 2009) in The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine showed that taking 250 mg of ginger capsules, 4 times daily, significantly reduced nausea and vomiting compared to the group given the placebo pill. All 67 women in the study were pregnant and were experiencing nausea and vomiting problems at the beginning of the study.

This is a research paper that you may wish to bring to the attention of your physician if you are pregnant or if you become pregnant (and nausea and vomiting is an issue for you).

For individuals who are not pregnant of breast feeding, you may wish to consider taking 250 mg of ginger capsules, four times daily if you are bothered by a condition that induces nausea (and/or vomiting) or if this problem is side effect of a drug or medical treatment you are receiving, or in cases where you may be bothered by motion sickness.

Reference: Ozgoli G, Ozgoli M, Simbar M. Effects of ginger capsules on pregnancy, nausea and vomiting. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. March 2009, 15 (3):243-246