Does Smelling Alcohol Help With Nausea? A Nurse Explains

Ever really feel queasy and attain for ginger ale or crackers to assist? Each sound tempting, however nurses have an old-school hack that may work even higher: sniffing rubbing alcohol. Whereas this may shock you, smelling alcohol can typically assist with nausea, and it has been used as a fast repair for queasiness for generations. Seems, the robust scent can work wonders to calm an upset abdomen.

Curious how a whiff of one thing so sharp will help? Learn on to study extra about this little-known nausea treatment and why it is nonetheless a go-to for a lot of nurses.

Why sniffing rubbing alcohol helps nausea

Whereas it could be the primary time you’re listening to about it (us too), this nausea hack is hardly new. “Isopropyl alcohol was initially used as a South American folks treatment for nausea,” Jennifer Shepherd, DNP, MHA, RN, the director of nursing training and product administration on the American Nurses Association, tells Nicely+Good.

Extra just lately, a examine discovered the hack “to be efficient in reducing nausea severity¹ by greater than 50 p.c, and in a shorter time in comparison with anti-nausea medicines similar to ondansetron and promethazine,” Shepherd says. The examine, printed in 2018 in Cochrane Review, additionally discovered that individuals who sniffed isopropyl alcohol wanted fewer medication to deal with their post-surgery nausea.

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It isn’t completely clear why smelling rubbing alcohol works or why it solely works for some folks. Nevertheless, medical professionals have a number of theories. The primary one is easy: “It is a distraction,” says Liesel Teen BSN, RN, a labor and supply nurse and host of The Mommy Labor Nurse Podcast. A sniff of rubbing alcohol can briefly take your thoughts off feeling nauseous, she provides. However there’s additionally a organic aspect—its robust, sharp scent stimulates the olfactory nerves (liable for scent), which interferes with the mind’s nausea pathways, Shepherd says.

One other concept has to do with how briskly rubbing alcohol evaporates. It creates a cooling sensation within the nasal passages that may ease nausea in some folks, Teen says. It may additionally assist by regulating respiration. Generally nausea and irregular respiration go hand-in-hand, so sniffing alcohol could “reset” your senses and gradual your breath, she says.

This methodology may be tremendous helpful in conditions when folks want fast aid from nausea, which Shepherd and Teen say can embody the next:

That mentioned, there are particular teams of individuals for whom this tip might not be useful or advisable, together with:

• Pregnant folks: “Whereas some may discover aid, others could also be delicate to robust smells, which may worsen nausea,” Shepherd says.
• Individuals with persistent situations like gastroparesis or extreme gastrointestinal disorders: You’ll possible want extra complete remedy for nausea associated to those medical points, Shepherd says.
• Individuals with respiratory conditions: They could discover the robust fumes irritating, Shepherd says.
• Kids: There’s not a lot analysis on whether or not inhaling rubbing alcohol will help children with nausea. That means, it’s additionally unclear whether or not it’s efficient or secure for them, Teen says.

Additionally price noting: Sniffing rubbing alcohol forward of time (i.e., earlier than a highway journey or surgical procedure) received’t cease nausea from hitting you later, Teen says.

Is it secure?

For essentially the most half, “sniffing isopropyl alcohol is mostly thought of secure when performed often and in small quantities,” Shepherd says. That mentioned, there are potential dangers, particularly in case you do it for too lengthy or too typically, she says.

Based on Shepherd, extended or repeated publicity to isopropyl alcohol can irritate your nasal passages and respiratory system. Inhaling an excessive amount of may additionally trigger dizziness and lightheadedness, and the robust scent may trigger complications for some folks. It additionally won’t be a good suggestion for individuals who’ve handled inhalant misuse points.

“Inhalant use is like different substance use disorders as a result of it immediately stimulates the brain’s reward system, resulting in compulsive use and potential dependence,” Shepherd says.

And since there’s restricted analysis on sniffing alcohol for youths and pregnant folks, it is robust to say whether or not this nausea hack is secure for them, Teen says. When you’re not sure, ask your healthcare supplier for recommendation and different anti-nausea hacks.

The right way to sniff rubbing alcohol for nausea

So long as you are taking a number of precautions, taking a whiff of rubbing alcohol while you really feel woozy is mostly secure for most individuals. If you wish to give it a go, right here’s methods to do it safely:

1. For starters, “ensure you’re in a well-ventilated area similar to outdoor or someplace close to an open window,” Teen says.
2. Maintain an alcohol pad about two to 6 inches away out of your nostril. When you don’t have an alcohol pad available, you too can soak a cotton ball in isopropyl alcohol.
3. “Take a number of deep breaths, inhaling the fumes for about 30 seconds to a minute,” Shepherd says. “You need to have the ability to scent the rubbing alcohol with out it fully overwhelming you,” Teen provides.
4. Hearken to your physique. “When you don’t get aid, otherwise you begin to really feel humorous, instantly cease,” Teen says.
5. In the identical vein, in case your nausea persists, don’t maintain sniffing, Shepherd says. Attain out to a healthcare supplier as a substitute, she says.

Different attainable nausea remedies

If the rubbing alcohol trick does not be just right for you (it will not for everybody), there are different pure remedies you possibly can attempt to nix nausea, like these nurse-approved cures:

Ginger

Shepherd and Teen each advocate consuming ginger (assume ginger tea or ginger candies). Johns Hopkins Medicine says ginger improves your digestion, so meals does not stick round too lengthy within the intestine and make you’re feeling nauseous.

Peppermint

A current examine discovered that peppermint oil helped cut down nausea³, vomiting, and gagging in folks present process chemotherapy whereas making their nausea much less intense. The folks on this examine simply put a drop of peppermint oil below their noses to reap the advantages.

However in case you’re not a fan of important oils? Peppermint tea ($9) could have the same impact, Shepherd says.

Acupressure

Acupressure—a kind of therapeutic massage based mostly on the normal Chinese language medication follow of acupuncture—entails placing strain on sure areas (referred to as acupoints) in your physique. It helps curb nausea by changing the pain signals your nerves ship to your mind. “Making use of strain to the P-6 level on the wrist can present aid,” Shepherd says.

This is methods to discover strain level P-6, in accordance with the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center:

• Place your hand in order that your fingers are pointing up and your palm is going through you.
• Place the primary three fingers of your different hand throughout your wrist. Your fingers needs to be positioned just under your wrist crease (the place your wrist bends).
• Place your thumb just under your index (pointer) finger. Take away the three fingers out of your wrist, however maintain your thumb on that spot and press down.
• It is best to be capable of really feel two giant tendons (tissue that connects muscle tissues to bones) in between your thumb. This spot in between the 2 tendons is strain level P-6.

If you need, you too can purchase acupressure wristbands ($5) that press on these strain factors, too.

Hydration

Generally nausea strikes while you’re dehydrated, so “sipping on clear fluids like water or electrolyte drinks” will help, Shepherd says. You may drink plain H2O or use electrolyte drink mixes like Nuun daily hydration tablets ($22) or Liquid IV hydration multiplier mix ($26).

Eat small snacks or frequent meals.

“It depends upon the supply of nausea, but when [it’s] associated to being pregnant and morning sickness, it could be useful to maintain one thing in your abdomen always,” Teen says. Keep on with low-fat and bland, starchy meals. “Even popping a saltine cracker in your mouth very first thing within the morning will help with nausea aid,” she says.

Vitamin B6

This important vitamin “aids within the metabolism of carbohydrates and helps regulate blood sugar ranges, which may, in flip, cut back the chance of nausea,” Teen says. The National Institutes of Health says you will get vitamin B6 by meals like chickpeas, tuna, fortified breakfast cereals, or by a complement. Simply you’ll want to examine in along with your healthcare supplier earlier than making an attempt a brand new complement, although.

Recent air

Generally, a blast of cool air and a easy change of surroundings will help distract you from feeling nauseous, Shepherd says. For instance, in case you’re feeling automobile sick, turning up the AC or making a pit cease to stroll round exterior for a bit will help. After all, it is a non permanent aid technique; in case your nausea is persistent, one thing like ginger or peppermint will help.

If house cures aren’t chopping it, and also you’re nonetheless feeling queasy, communicate along with your healthcare supplier. Relying in your scenario, they could prescribe you an antiemetic medication to deal with your nausea—like Dramamine ($3).

When to see a healthcare supplier

At one time or one other, we’ve all felt slightly sick to our abdomen. Normally, it’s a simple rationalization: one thing you ate didn’t agree with you, otherwise you bought movement illness on a ship trip. In these circumstances, you possibly can handle nausea at house till it goes away by itself. However in case you can’t shake your nausea, your physique could be telling you one thing. Extreme or persistent nausea could possibly be an indication of an underlying situation.

Shepherd and Teen advocate you see a healthcare supplier if:

• Nausea continues for a number of days
• Nausea is accompanied by extreme signs like chest ache, extreme belly ache, excessive fever, confusion, or blurred imaginative and prescient
• You’ve got extreme or extreme vomiting, otherwise you’re unable to maintain liquids down
• You’ve got side effects of dehydration like dry mouth, sunken eyes, or fast respiration
• You’ve got blood or fecal materials in your vomit

When you’re pregnant and also you’re coping with extreme nausea that’s messing along with your high quality of life, don’t be afraid to talk up. “Some extent of nausea is quite common and anticipated in being pregnant, however in case you are ever involved, I extremely advocate contacting your OB/GYN supplier,” Teen says. Your healthcare supplier can study you to rule out any medical points and provide you with a secure remedy plan that can assist you handle your nausea.