2004-4-27
This is Phoebe Zimmermann with the VOA Special English Health
Report.
Stomach sickness is common during the first three months of
pregnancy. Experts say most pregnant women experience times when
food will not stay down. Or they feel like they might be sick at any
moment. Such vomiting and nausea often happen in the morning.
Many pregnant women are afraid to
take medicines. They worry about possible harm to their baby. So,
instead, many women take ginger products as a treatment for stomach
sickness. These products are made from the ginger plant. Ginger is a
traditional treatment for stomach problems in many cultures. Yet
research on the safety has been limited.
Now, a small study in Australia has added to recent evidence in
support of ginger. Caroline Smith of the University of South
Australia in Adelaide headed the research team. The findings appear
in the publication Obstetrics and Gynecology.
The team compared ginger with a vitamin that doctors commonly
tell pregnant women to take for stomach sickness. The vitamin is
B-six. The team studied almost three-hundred women. These women had
been pregnant less than sixteen weeks and had nausea and vomiting.
For the study, all the women took three pills a day. They did not
know if these contained ginger or the vitamin. The women who took
ginger received a total of one-point-zero-five grams per day. The
other women took seventy-five milligrams of vitamin B-six per day.
At the end of three weeks, the researchers compared the results.
About half the women in both groups reported reductions in nausea
and vomiting. In other words, the ginger and the B-six were equally
effective. And there was no evidence of bad effects from either one.
A small Canadian study reported in November showed similar
results for ginger. Doctor Galina Portnoi of the University of
Toronto in Ontario led that study. It compared pregnant women who
had used ginger products with others who had not. The researchers
reported that the ginger provided some help with nausea and
vomiting.
These studies seem to support the popularity of ginger among
pregnant women. But the scientists say they cannot guarantee the
safety for the women or their babies without more research.
This VOA Special English Health Report was written by Jerilyn
Watson. I'm Phoebe Zimmermann.