SumGood Foods Inc. · Scientific reviewer: Dr. Bohdan L. Luhovyy, PhD, MSVU · · 8 min read
When you're nauseous, the standard "drink more water" advice can make things worse. The research backs that intuition.
Most nausea-hydration content is either pharmaceutical (antiemetic-focused) or anecdotal (ginger, peppermint, etc.). Few sources address the practical question: what should I actually drink right now? This guide covers evidence-based answers across four common contexts: morning sickness, migraines, stomach bugs, and post-exercise nausea.
Important: SumGood is a food product, not a treatment for nausea or any medical condition. This article is for general education. Persistent nausea or inability to keep fluids down warrants medical attention.
Why does "drink more water" often fail when you're nauseous?
Two reasons. First, large volumes of any fluid, including plain water, can trigger or worsen the nausea reflex when gastric motility is already impaired. Second, taste and smell perception change during nausea (especially in pregnancy and migraine), so what was tolerable yesterday isn't today.
The physiology helps explain it. Nausea involves the vomiting center in the brainstem, which integrates signals from the gut, vestibular system, and chemoreceptor trigger zone. When that system is sensitized, by hCG in pregnancy, by a migraine attack, by a viral gastroenteritis, volume and temperature both matter. Warm fluids often feel worse than cold. A full glass feels worse than a sip. Anything strongly flavoured can be a trigger.
What does the evidence say actually helps?
The literature consistently points to four characteristics for nausea-friendly fluid intake: cool temperature, small frequent sips (rather than large volumes), lower osmolarity (not too sugary, not too salty), and palatable to you right now (not yesterday's taste preference).
| What helps | What hurts |
|---|---|
| Cool or cold temperature | Warm fluids, hot beverages |
| Small frequent sips (1-2 oz at a time) | Forcing a full glass |
| Lower osmolarity (water, ORS, fruit-based drinks) | High-sugar sports drinks, very salty fluids |
| Frozen formats (ice chips, popsicles, freezies) | Strongly-scented or strongly-flavoured drinks |
| Whatever you find palatable right now | "Healthy" drinks you have to push through |
The "ice chips and popsicles" recommendation in clinical settings is itself a form of evidence. Hospital protocols use cool, palatable, low-volume formats for patients with chemotherapy-induced nausea, post-anesthesia nausea, and severe HG. The principles transfer to milder home contexts.
Morning sickness and pregnancy nausea
Nausea and vomiting of pregnancy (NVP) affects 70-80% of pregnancies, and hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) affects 0.3-3% (StatPearls, 2024; Pont et al., 2024). Hydration becomes hardest exactly when fluid needs are highest. The IOM AI for pregnancy is 3.0 L/day total water.
ACOG guidance for NVP includes lifestyle measures (small frequent meals, avoiding triggers, B6 + doxylamine when appropriate) and acknowledges that maintaining hydration can be difficult. For palatable hydration in NVP: cool fluids, small sips, frozen formats when nothing else works. When to call your OB or midwife: weight loss greater than 5% of pre-pregnancy weight, ketones in urine, persistent inability to tolerate liquids for 24+ hours. For trimester-specific guidance, see hydration during pregnancy.
Migraines and migraine-related nausea
Up to 90% of migraine sufferers report nausea or vomiting during attacks (migraine literature consensus). Dehydration is both a trigger and a symptom, and once nausea sets in, drinking gets harder, which compounds the dehydration that may have triggered the attack in the first place.
What works during a migraine attack: cool fluids in small sips, dim quiet environment, sometimes frozen formats to bypass volume triggers. Many migraine sufferers describe the same pattern: a cold popsicle or freezie is tolerable when a glass of water or a sports drink isn't. Talk to your neurologist if migraine-related dehydration is a recurring problem; preventive medications and acute rescue plans can reduce the cycle.
Stomach bugs and gastroenteritis
Acute gastroenteritis is a leading cause of dehydration globally, with severity ranging from mild (manageable at home) to severe (requiring IV fluids). For mild adult cases, the standard guidance is small frequent sips of clear fluids and gradual reintroduction of bland foods.
For moderate-to-severe dehydration, especially in children: oral rehydration solution (ORS) is first-line. Pediatric ORS products (Pedialyte and equivalents) are formulated specifically for the electrolyte balance lost in diarrhea and vomiting. Food products like SumGood are not a substitute for ORS in clinical dehydration. When to escalate to ER: persistent vomiting that prevents fluid intake for 24+ hours, signs of severe dehydration (rapid heart rate, dizziness, confusion, very dark urine, decreased urination), or any concerning symptoms in a child or senior. For pediatric specifics, see hydration for kids.
Post-exercise nausea
Exercise-induced GI symptoms affect 30-90% of endurance athletes, with nausea cited as the #1 reason for not finishing 161-km ultramarathons (Costa et al., 2017; MDPI Physiologia, 2022). The physiology: blood is pulled from the gut to working muscles during exercise, gastric emptying slows, and whatever's still sitting in your stomach (including any sports drink you took on board mid-effort) can trigger nausea once you stop.
In a 2024 Mount Saint Vincent University clinical study (n=60), participants reported a 49% reduction in nausea (P=0.04) after consuming two SumGood freezies post-exercise (Luhovyy et al., 2024).
Honest framing: this is data from healthy young adults in a controlled lab setting after exercise. It is not a claim that SumGood treats nausea or any medical condition. For the full study breakdown, see post-exercise hydration & recovery, what 60 adults taught us, or download the report on our Our Research page.
When should you call a healthcare provider?
Call your healthcare provider for: nausea/vomiting that prevents fluid intake for 24+ hours, signs of severe dehydration (rapid heart rate, dizziness, confusion, very dark urine), nausea with chest pain or severe headache, persistent vomiting in pregnancy, or any concern about a child's or senior's hydration status. Use the ER for severe or rapidly worsening symptoms.
Frequently asked questions
What's the best drink when you feel nauseous?
Cool, palatable options taken in small frequent sips. Frozen formats can help when standard drinks are intolerable. The literature supports lower-osmolarity options over sugary sports drinks.
Do popsicles really help with nausea?
Cool, palatable formats (including popsicles, ice chips, and freezies) are commonly used in clinical settings, including for HG and chemotherapy-induced nausea, because they sidestep volume and temperature triggers.
Can electrolyte drinks help with morning sickness?
Within Health Canada ranges and free of excessive sodium and added sugar, they may help replace fluid and electrolytes lost to vomiting. Always discuss with your HCP, especially if you have HG.
Are SumGood freezies meant for nausea?
SumGood is a food product, not a treatment for nausea or any medical condition. In a 2024 clinical study, participants reported reduced nausea after consumption. See our Our Research page for the full study.
What about kids with stomach bugs?
Pediatric oral rehydration solutions (Pedialyte, etc.) are first-line for moderate-severe dehydration in children. Always consult your pediatrician.
When should I go to the ER?
Inability to keep fluids down for 24+ hours, signs of severe dehydration, decreased urination, lethargy, confusion, or any concerning symptoms in a child or senior.
The bottom line
- Cool, small sips, lower-osmolarity, palatable: the four-criteria framework for nausea-friendly fluids
- Frozen formats can clear all four criteria when standard drinks fail
- For pediatric or severe cases, use ORS and consult your provider
- SumGood is a food, not a treatment, so talk to your healthcare provider for any medical context
Read more: hydration through life's sensitive stages · hydration during pregnancy