I’m seeing a lot if reports of nausea on the Facebook groups lately. Nausea can be caused by many things, but it’s not normally caused by eating a well-balanced diet. So what might be causing it?

• Illness. It’s that time of year. My daughter just got over a virus that had her in the bathroom for most of two days. She was nauseated before and after, but that nausea resulted in uncontrollable vomiting and diarrhea. Almost nothing stayed in her stomach. This wasn’t just the loose stool many of you experience as your body adjusts to the new way of eating, but rather totally uncontrollable waterworks from the anus. Gross, I know, but it’s not really related to what you’re eating, just simply to the fact you are eating. You would puke up anything, not just healthy food. This might be accompanied by a fever. Check with your doctor for this one.
• Food poisoning. See above. If you experience nausea, which is followed by vomiting/diarrhea, and you’ve ruled out an infection, you might have food poisoning. Check with your doctor for this one.
• Pregnancy. Unless it’s impossible, just check to be sure 😉
• Hunger. Many people can’t actually recognize the sensation of hunger, and when they feel it, think it’s nausea. Make sure you are eating the recommended amounts of protein, fat, and veggies. If your nausea isn’t leading to vomiting and/or you don’t have other digestive distress (diarrhea, etc…) try eating a mini meal. If that makes the nausea go away, you now know that wasn’t nausea you felt, but hunger! If the nausea is leading to vomiting, see above, and check in with your doctor.
• Food aversion. You know you can’t stomach food in the morning! Nope, nope, nope! Not gonna happen! And because you know it, even if there is no basis in fact, your body responds exactly as you expect it to respond. It’s not necessarily related solely to a specific meal, but could also be related to specific foods. For example, just typing out “bologna” makes me gag a little, thanks to an unfortunate incident with an entire pack of bologna and a merry go round when I was a child. This nausea is all in your head. Try to think positively. You can eat breakfast. It doesn’t event have to be breakfast. Try having your favorite meal for “meal 1.” And if you eat that delicious meal (which isn’t breakfast, wink-wink-nudge-nudge) and still feel sick, or vomit, then check with your doctor! By the way, I’m still not eating any bologna, but it’s not part of my healthy way of eating, so I get a free pass 😛
• Food allergies and intolerances. You might experience nausea after eating specific foods. If you find that every time you eat shrimp, for example, but you’re fine eating anything else, then it’s very possible you either just don’t like the food for some reason (seriously, bologna, puke!) or it could be that you have an allergy or intolerance to that food. Sometimes these allergies and intolerances will cause other symptoms, such as rashes, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and swelling. If you’ve ruled everything else out, check with your doctor, because food allergies can become life-threatening.

So what if you’re not sick, pregnant, or hungry, and you don’t have any aversions, allergies, or intolerances, but you’re still experiencing nausea? There are many other things that can cause nausea. As I’ve said throughout this post, check with your doctor if you’re concerned. You should not feel nauseated all the time. Nausea is your body’s way of telling you something is wrong.