30 Foods to Eat When You're Nauseous but Hungry

When you're nauseous from cancer treatment or for other reasons, it can be hard to eat. Of course, healthy foods help keep your body strong. So what should you eat when you're nauseous but hungry?

Quick fixes to stop nausea fast may vary depending on what's causing you to feel nauseous. To ease nausea, you can start with the BRAT diet recommendations. Add low-fiber cereals, shakes, smoothies, frozen fruit bars, pancakes, and eggs as you're able. Sip water, too. It will keep you hydrated while providing relief.

This article looks at what types of choices are good and why.

Breakfast made of oatmeal with apples, honey and cinnamon
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High-Starch Foods

Starchy foods are often recommended to people experiencing nausea. Examples of good choices include:

  • Crackers
  • Dry white toast
  • White rice
  • Bananas
  • Sweet potatoes or regular potatoes

It’s not clear why people tolerate dry, plain foods when they’re nauseous, and there isn't any scientific research to verify their effectiveness. However, it’s known that people feel more nauseous on an empty stomach and react poorly to strong-smelling foods.

High-Protein Foods

To keep your energy up, it's essential to have nutrient-rich foods. Choose high-protein meals, but keep your choices bland, skipping spicy seasonings and dressings. Healthy options include:

  • Greek yogurt
  • Baked chicken
  • Hard-boiled eggs
  • Tofu and edamame

People with cancer often need more protein than usual because extra protein is needed after surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation therapy to aid healing and help fight infection.

Hard Candy

Sucking a bit of hard candy may also ease an upset stomach. Try candy flavors such as:

  • Lemon or other sour flavors
  • Ginger
  • Peppermint

Research has shown ginger is an effective and safe treatment for nausea. Ginger comes in many forms—fresh, dried, pickled, preserved, crystallized, candied, and powdered or ground. More studies are needed to accurately determine the most effective doses and preparations for treating nausea.

High-Fiber Foods

High-fiber foods are nutrient-rich and important to eat regularly, but they can slow down digestion, so they may be difficult to tolerate when feeling nauseous. Try these foods that may help prevent or lessen nausea while also providing fiber:

  • Apples
  • Raw carrot, spinach, and other high-fiber vegetables
  • Medium potato with skin
  • Pears
  • Prunes

Cool Foods

Spicy and hot foods can aggravate nausea. Instead, choose foods that are cool. In addition to being easier on your stomach, cool and cold foods have less odor, so they are less likely to bring on nausea. Try a variety of foods such as:

  • Chilled apple or watermelon
  • 100% fruit ice pops
  • Cold pasta
  • Smoothies

In a small study, pregnant people reported apples and watermelon to be the most agreeable and caused the least nausea of the four foods tested.

Tea

While cool foods help in some instances, hot tea is the best choice for others. Add honey and lemon for taste. Some of the best herbal teas to ease nausea include:

These teas can also be cooled and consumed as iced tea if cold foods and beverages are better tolerated.

Other Beverages

Drinking enough liquid is important when you're nauseous, especially if you're vomiting. Water is the best choice when it comes to relieving nausea, but you can sip any of these liquids to relieve symptoms:

  • Water
  • Fruit juice
  • Broth
  • Sports drinks and other drinks with electrolytes
  • Flat soda (leave the can or bottle open until the bubbles are gone)

Medication for Nausea

Dietary changes can help, but you should also continue to take anti-nausea medication that's prescribed by your healthcare provider. It can be your best defense for dealing with queasiness. Even if you don’t feel nauseated, take your medications as prescribed to prevent nausea and vomiting from occurring.

If your medications aren't working, let your healthcare provider know. There are a variety of medications available, and it may take trial and error to find the right one.

What to Eat When You Have No Appetite

When nausea takes away your appetite for extended periods, getting nutrient-rich foods becomes even more important for increasing energy, maintaining immunity, and reducing inflammation. Choose foods such as:

  • Protein foods that are mild, along with plant-based proteins like beans
  • Minimally processed carbs, like oats, brown rice, whole wheat bread, potatoes, and sweet potatoes
  • Healthy unsaturated fats, like avocado, olive oil, nuts, and seeds
  • Fruits and vegetables for fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants

Tips to Prevent and Soothe Nausea

  • If possible, stay away from the kitchen when food is being prepared to avoid strong smells.
  • Keep snacks handy so you can eat as soon as you feel hungry.
  • Try keeping a little food in your stomach at all times. Having a completely empty stomach may worsen nausea. This may mean eating smaller and more frequent meals throughout the day instead of bigger and fewer meals.
  • Stay upright, either in a chair or propped up with pillows, for at least 30-60 minutes after eating. Lying flat after meals and snacks can worsen nausea and heartburn.
  • Drink water. Keeping hydrated can help a great deal with nausea. If you cannot do so on your own, your healthcare provider may suggest fluid infusions in the clinic.
  • Cut the overly sweet taste of liquid nutritional products (e.g., Ensure) by adding 1 to 2 teaspoons of finely ground, decaffeinated coffee to chocolate or vanilla flavors.
  • Sit quietly. Moving around can make you feel even more nauseous.
  • Try watching TV to help distract your mind from nausea.

Foods to Avoid When You Are Nauseous

Some typesof food will make nausea worse. The list of foods to avoid when you're feeling nauseous includes:

  • Greasy and processed foods
  • Foods high in salt
  • Foods with strong smells
  • Caffeine, alcohol, and carbonated drinks
  • Very spicy foods
  • Dairy products

Some foods are double-whammies because they are not only greasy or processed but also high in salt. This includes white breads, pastries, donuts, sausage, fast-food burgers, fried food, chips, and canned foods.

Summary

Nausea is a common side effect of cancer treatment, but it can affect you for a variety of other reasons too, including pregnancy or a bacterial infection. While you may not feel like putting anything in your stomach when you're feeling ill, it's important to get the nutrition you need to keep your strength up and recover.

Since different foods work for different people, try a variety of these foods to help prevent or lessen nausea. If your nausea and/or vomiting gets worse or is difficult to control, talk to your healthcare provider about other tests and treatments.

A Word From Verywell

Bland foods, foods lower in fat, and ginger may ease nausea for some people, while fragrant, spicy, and fatty foods may worsen nausea for some. Everyone is different. It may take some trial and error to find what eases or triggers your nausea. However, you don’t have to tackle nausea alone. A registered dietitian can guide you through this process.

8 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
  1. Marx W, Kiss N, McCarthy AL, McKavanagh D, Isenring L. Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting: A Narrative Review to Inform Dietetics PracticeJ Acad Nutr Diet. 2016;116(5):819-827. doi:10.1016/j.jand.2015.10.020

  2. American Cancer Society. Benefits of good nutrition during cancer treatment.

  3. Lete I, Allué J. The Effectiveness of Ginger in the Prevention of Nausea and Vomiting during Pregnancy and ChemotherapyIntegr Med Insights. 2016;11:11-17. Published 2016 Mar 31. doi:10.4137/IMI.S36273

  4. Tan GN, Tan PC, Hong JGS, Kartik B, Omar SZ. Rating of four different foods in women with hyperemesis gravidarum: a randomised controlled trialBMJ Open. 2021;11(5):e046528. Published 2021 May 13. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2020-046528

  5. MedlinePlus. When you have nausea and vomiting.

  6. American Cancer Society. Managing nausea and vomiting at home.

  7. Johns Hopkins Medicine. Cancer diet: foods to add and avoid during cancer treatment.

  8. National Cancer Institute. Nutrition in cancer care (PDQ®)–patient version.

Additional Reading
  • Oncology Nutrition Dietetic Practice Group. The Clinical Guide to Oncology Nutrition, Second Edition. (Elliott L, Molseed LL, McCallum PD, Grant B, Eds.). American Dietetic Association: Chicago, IL.

By Suzanne Dixon, MPH, RD
Suzanne Dixon, MPH, MS, RDN, is an award-winning registered dietitian and epidemiologist, as well as an expert in cancer prevention and management.