A randomized controlled trial of ginger to treat nausea and vomiting in pregnancy.
OBJECTIVE
To estimate whether the use of ginger to treat nausea or vomiting in pregnancy is equivalent to pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6).


METHODS
A randomized, controlled equivalence trial involving 291 women less than 16 weeks pregnant was undertaken at a teaching hospital in Australia. Women took 1.05 g of ginger or 75 mg of vitamin B6 daily for 3 weeks. Differences from baseline in nausea and vomiting scores were estimated for both groups at days 7, 14, and 21.


RESULTS
Ginger was equivalent to vitamin B6 in reducing nausea (mean difference 0.2, 90% confidence interval [CI] -0.3, 0.8), retching (mean difference 0.3; 90% CI -0.0, 0.6) and vomiting (mean difference 0.5; 90% CI 0.0, 0.9), averaged over time, with no evidence of different effects at the 3 time points.


CONCLUSIONS
For women looking for relief from their nausea, dry retching, and vomiting, the use of ginger in early pregnancy will reduce their symptoms to an equivalent extent as vitamin B6.


METHODS
I
Smith
Caroline
C
Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia. caroline.smith@unisa.edu.au
Crowther
Caroline
C
Willson
Kristyn
K
Hotham
Neil
N
McMillian
Vicki
V
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D020939:Zingiber officinale; D006801:Humans; D009325:Nausea / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008517:Phytotherapy; D028321:Plant Preparations / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D011261:Pregnancy Trimester, First; D011262:Pregnancy Trimester, Second; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D016037:Single-Blind Method; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D025101:Vitamin B 6 / Q000627:therapeutic use; D014839:Vomiting / Q000188:drug therapy*
D028321:Plant Preparations; D025101:Vitamin B 6