Utilization of home remedies to relieve Nausea and Vomiting among Pregnant Women

Background: Nausea and vomiting affect a large proportion of women in early pregnancy, yet because it is a physiological symptom it is often missed by health professionals, leaving women to find their own coping mechanisms.  Many pregnant women try a range of complementary and alternative therapies and natural remedies. Aim: aim of the study was to assess home remedy utilized to relieve nausea and vomiting among pregnant women. Subjects and Methods: A descriptive cross sectional study design was adopted in this study among two hundred pregnant women attending antenatal clinics for follow- up in the 6 Maternal and Child Health Centers (MCH) in Port-Said City. A specially designed questionnaire was used to collect the data in the period between January and May 2014. Results: More than fifty of the users reported utilizing home remedies during pregnancy. The most commonly used remedies were Peppermint, lemon (citrus), vegetables, and Zangabel( Ginger). Conclusion: A large percentage of the women in the study used home remedies during pregnancy. Many of them believed that home remedies are safer on the health of their fetus than medical treatment during pregnancy. Recommendations: To develop a health education program directed toward pregnant women to increase their awareness about the benefits and harms of home remedies in ante-natal care clinics especially for herbs commonly used and the importance of consultation of health care provider  before taking any type of herbs during pregnancy, since many of these herbal remedies are self-prescribed based on the woman’s own information or belief.