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 usually assist with nausea, and it has been used as a fast repair for queasiness for generations. Seems, the sturdy scent can work wonders to calm an upset abdomen.

Curious how a whiff of one thing so sharp may also 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 is likely to 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 Properly+Good.

Extra just lately, a examine discovered the hack “to be efficient in reducing nausea severity¹ by greater than 50 %, and in a shorter time in comparison with anti-nausea drugs corresponding 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 is not completely clear why smelling rubbing alcohol works or why it solely works for some individuals. Nonetheless, 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 facet—its sturdy, sharp scent stimulates the olfactory nerves (chargeable for scent), which interferes with the mind’s nausea pathways, Shepherd says.

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

This methodology could be tremendous helpful in conditions when individuals want fast reduction from nausea, which Shepherd and Teen say can embody the next:

That mentioned, there are specific teams of individuals for whom this tip is probably not useful or advisable, together with:

• Pregnant individuals: “Whereas some may discover reduction, others could also be delicate to sturdy smells, which may worsen nausea,” Shepherd says.
• Individuals with continual 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 sturdy fumes irritating, Shepherd says.
• Youngsters: There’s not a lot analysis on whether or not inhaling rubbing alcohol may also help youngsters 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 usually thought-about secure when executed often and in small quantities,” Shepherd says. That mentioned, there are potential dangers, particularly should you do it for too lengthy or too usually, 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 also trigger dizziness and lightheadedness, and the sturdy scent may trigger complications for some individuals. It additionally may not 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 teenagers and pregnant individuals, it is robust to say whether or not this nausea hack is secure for them, Teen says. For those who’re uncertain, ask your healthcare supplier for recommendation and different anti-nausea hacks.

How one can sniff rubbing alcohol for nausea

So long as you are taking a couple of precautions, taking a whiff of rubbing alcohol if you really feel woozy is usually secure for most individuals. If you wish to give it a go, right here’s find out how to do it safely:

1. For starters, “ensure you’re in a well-ventilated area corresponding to outside or someplace close to an open window,” Teen says.
2. Maintain an alcohol pad about two to 6 inches away out of your nostril. For those who don’t have an alcohol pad available, you may also soak a cotton ball in isopropyl alcohol.
3. “Take a couple 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. “For those who don’t get reduction, 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 potential nausea remedies

If the rubbing alcohol trick would not give you the results you want (it will not for everybody), there are different pure remedies you possibly can attempt to nix nausea, like these nurse-approved treatments:

Ginger

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

Peppermint

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

However should you’re not a fan of important oils? Peppermint tea ($9) could have an identical impact, Shepherd says.

Acupressure

Acupressure—a kind of therapeutic massage based mostly on the standard Chinese language medication observe of acupuncture—includes placing stress 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 stress to the P-6 level on the wrist can present reduction,” Shepherd says.

Here is find out how to discover stress level P-6, in keeping with the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center:

• Place your hand in order that your fingers are pointing up and your palm is dealing with you.
• Place the primary three fingers of your different hand throughout your wrist. Your fingers ought to be positioned slightly below your wrist crease (the place your wrist bends).
• Place your thumb slightly below your index (pointer) finger. Take away the three fingers out of your wrist, however maintain your thumb on that spot and press down.
• You must be capable of really feel two massive tendons (tissue that connects muscle mass to bones) in between your thumb. This spot in between the 2 tendons is stress level P-6.

In order for you, you may also purchase acupressure wristbands ($5) that press on these stress factors, too.

Hydration

Typically nausea strikes if you’re dehydrated, so “sipping on clear fluids like water or electrolyte drinks” may also 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 relies on the supply of nausea, but when [it’s] associated to being pregnant and morning sickness, it is likely to 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 may also help with nausea reduction,” she says.

Vitamin B6

This important vitamin “aids within the metabolism of carbohydrates and helps regulate blood sugar ranges, which might, in flip, scale back the probability of nausea,” Teen says. The National Institutes of Health says you will get vitamin B6 via meals like chickpeas, tuna, fortified breakfast cereals, or via a complement. Simply make sure you examine in along with your healthcare supplier earlier than attempting a brand new complement, although.

Contemporary air

Typically, a blast of cool air and a easy change of surroundings may also help distract you from feeling nauseous, Shepherd says. For instance, should you’re feeling automotive sick, turning up the AC or making a pit cease to stroll round outdoors for a bit may also help. In fact, this can be a momentary reduction technique; in case your nausea is persistent, one thing like ginger or peppermint may also help.

If house treatments aren’t reducing it, and also you’re nonetheless feeling queasy, converse 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 a little bit sick to our abdomen. Normally, it’s a straightforward rationalization: one thing you ate didn’t agree with you, otherwise you acquired movement illness on a ship trip. In these instances, you possibly can handle nausea at house till it goes away by itself. However should you can’t shake your nausea, your physique is likely to be telling you one thing. Extreme or persistent nausea might be an indication of an underlying situation.

Shepherd and Teen suggest 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 may have extreme or extreme vomiting, otherwise you’re unable to maintain liquids down
• You may have side effects of dehydration like dry mouth, sunken eyes, or fast respiratory
• You may have blood or fecal materials in your vomit

For those who’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. “A point of nausea is quite common and anticipated in being pregnant, however if you’re ever involved, I extremely suggest contacting your OB/GYN supplier,” Teen says. Your healthcare supplier can look at you to rule out any medical points and provide you with a secure remedy plan that will help you handle your nausea.