Recipes needed to combat nausea

Cafe Society
1

I wondered if anyone could provide any recipes for a cancer patient suffering from severe nausea. The nausea is so intense that the patient can barely eat, and they have had to postpone chemo as they are not strong enough because of the lack of nutrition. The patient can barely manage to consume even tiny amounts of broth.

I know ginger is supposed to be effective but does anyone else have any recipes they have successfully tried with very ill people? The doctors of course are being consulted as well.

The patient is in the UK so specifically US ingredient mixes won’t be available; cooking from scratch is fine however.

Thanks in advance for any help/advice/information.

2

I had a friend who resorted to marijuana to combat nausea and to boost appetite. Ginger cookies with lots of ginger helped too (fresh ginger and homemade- not that store-bought crap).

Sorry to hear it.

3

Thanks. I think marijuana is probably out of the question unless it can be medically prescribed (the person is very conventional, and it would be extremely hard to obtain). Ginger cookies is a good idea, they could at least be nibbled on.

4

Sorry to hear that this person is having such a hard time with things. I can’t think of any recipes to suggest, but wanted to add my well wishes. I think you’re doing the right thing by making sure the doctors are involved. There are a number of different anti-nausea medications that can be tried that might help. Hope that things get easier for this person soon.

5

I deal with nauseaa because of my meds - rice congee is a comfort food and when made with a faair amount of ginger and garlic works for me.

I take a whole chicken, cut into quarters. Cover with water, put in one onion cut into quarters, a golf ball sized piece of ginger peeled and cut into discs. Bring to a boil and turn off. Let sit covered until the water is cold. Remove all solids from the broth, take the meat off the chicken and reserve. Toss the dead aromatics, chicken bones and skin. Put the broth in the refrigerator and chill. When the fat solidifies, remove.

Measure the broth. Take 2/3 the rice that would normally make with that amount of liquid, wash thoroughly and put into the broth, and simmer with another golf ball sized piece of ginger, an onion chopped and the chicken meat [however much you feel like putting in, since they are trying to build up, put it all in. ] and cook until it the rice is almost dissolving. THink of it as a rice variant of blancmange. [of course you can make it with leftover chicken and premade broth also]

I also nibble the candied ginger pieces.

Fat makes nausea worse, and sometimes the type of meat you are trying to eat can trigger nausea [right now anything pig in nature makes me vomit. no bacon, no bangers, not even a nice chop=( ] I have been able to manage some days with the thoroughly american peanut butter and jam sandwiches made with toast, so how about toast with the 'mite of your choice? How about fresh fruit as available - small nibbles of melon that is ice cold goes down a treat especially if it is very juicy. Ice cold grapes are also good, and I went through an orange phase and a pomegranite phase when they were in season.

Thinking about it, I would try making up a plate of very cold suculent fruits - small slices of melon, perhaps strawberries, grapes, orange pieces, banana. Add toast, table water biscuits, export crackers, arrowroot digestives. Maybe add some almonds, the honey and sesame seed boiled candies from middle eastern stores, and bits of candied ginger.

That way they can sort of nibble a tiny bit at a time over a long time instead of having to sit down and be expected to do a meal. it is amazing how much one can nibble over a long time if it is set down as a nibble plate by their chair or bed. Make sure they have lots of ice cold water, one of the problems with nausea is getting dehydrated as well.

6

A hot bath. No joke.
The frozen fruit and icewater mentioned above is very helpful; the two in combination worked wonders (at least, in one case I’m familiar with) to combat dehydration, which can get REALLY serious for prolonged nausea.

Have you considered going to work on this person’s “conventionality” re the Dreaded Weed? If they can take chemo, they can do other chemicals…and, I would add, it WORKS BETTER THAN ANYTHING ELSE. If they’re in the UK, shouldn’t be hard to get, or so I hear.

“Familiar with?” Yeah, I said that. REALLY familiar, I am. :frowning:

7

Thank you guys so much for this input, it is really really helpful.

I will look into the weed issue, but we are talking about someone who lived through the 60s and 70s and never so much as sniffed anything more than lavender water, so unless it was medically available, it really wouldn’t be easy. But I think the UK is supposed to have some allowances for it, so I will investigate this.

The dehyrdration has already been an issue, a drip had to be used at one point.

aruqvan - I am so sorry to hear that you also suffer from this. From the limited experience I have of nausea, I know how awful it is, I can barely begin to imagine what it must be like as a chronic condition.

8

There are many anti-emetics approved for use in cancer patients. Why not have the doctor prescribe these beofre resorting to weed and chicken soup?

9

The way I interpreted it is that istara is looking for ideas of things the patient’s family can do to feel like they’re helping the person while the docs are working on the medical management of this issue (which I definitely hope is accomplished soon).

10

When I was pregnant with my daughter I found one of the best things for my nausea was a product make of material that applied pressure to a certain point on the wrists. I don’t have any particular cite to back this up but I can write that it worked to a certain degree and was not painful.

The product was called sea bands or something of that name in the United States. You friend may wish to investigate this and see it if works. I bought the items for less than $10.

Good luck and good for you for trying to help.

11

I have a recipe for molasses cookies, that have a lot of ginger in them. I’ll dig out the recipe and post it when I get home.

For milder stomach upsets, I’ve found strong hot tea, with ginger and honey, is good.

12

Burt and Tang’s ginger tea. Yum. Generally, cold and smooth is better than hot and dry.

13

I know everyone posting here means well, but these home remedies, while they might help mild nausea, ain’t gonna touch chemo-induced nausea. Nausea induced by chemo is orders of magnitude worse than anything you and I have ever experienced, and is not going to be cured by molasses cookies or some New Age bracelet. Consult your MD, please.

14

I do suffer chemically induced nausea. Currently it is in the combination of meds that are not for cancer treatment, but I also did chemo for cancer. I am sharing what I used to cope with it then and now.