Nausea and vomiting are two undesirable side effects you may experience while undergoing treatment. It may be intermittent and temporary, however, over a long period of time it can have a negative impact on your nutritional status since your intake may be diminished. Following are some tips which may assist you in dealing with these side effects.
- Be sure to take your anti-nausea medication as prescribed by your doctor.
- Experiment with a clear liquid diet using such liquids as apple juice, cranberry juice, lemonade, broth, ginger ale, lemon lime soda, popsicles, gelatin, tea or colas.
- Try carbohydrate foods such as crackers, toast, hot or cold cereal, rice, pasta, noodles, pudding or tapioca.
- Try drinking a nutritional supplement such as Boost,® Ensure,® Carnation® Instant Breakfast (prepare with skim or 1% milk).
- Try to maintain your fluid intake by drinking a variety of fluids including water and salty fluids like broth. You may need to drink 1⁄2 to 1 cup fluid after a vomiting episode.
- Do not lie down flat for at least two hours after eating.
- Small, frequent meals may be tolerated better with emphasis on foods that are working well for you.
- Experiment with various foods to see which foods work the best for you.
- Avoid highly spiced or highly seasoned foods or those high in aromas. Instead, experiment with seasoning using mild herbs such as parsley, basil, salt, pepper, lemon or sugar to enhance sweetness, if needed.
- Avoid fried and fatty foods.
- Avoid high fiber grain, fruit and vegetable sources.
- You may wish to avoid eating immediately before or after your chemotherapy treatment if you tend to have nausea and/or vomiting.
- Your tastes may change throughout treatment so never force yourself to eat a particular food, but rather concentrate on the foods you have a desire to eat.