Best nausea teas for pregnancy

How do the options compare?

The comparison below weighs mainstream OB guideline standing, the depth of the pregnancy evidence base, dosing clarity, expected onset, and interactions worth flagging to your provider.

• Ginger tea made from fresh-grated ginger sits on ACOG's short list of ginger forms to try for nausea, alongside capsules, ginger candies, and ginger ale made with real ginger. 1
• Studies using an average of 1,000 mg of ginger a day in pregnancy have not found an increased chance of birth defects, miscarriage, preterm delivery, or low birth weight. 2
• A Cochrane review of 41 trials in 5,449 women covered ginger, chamomile, lemon oil, and mint oil among other interventions and concluded that there is a lack of high-quality evidence supporting any one of them. 3
• Peppermint oil inhalation performed no better than placebo on nausea and vomiting severity in a randomized trial of 56 pregnant women at 6 to 20 weeks, with both groups improving equally. 4
• Brewed tea averages about 48 mg of caffeine per 8 ounce cup against 137 mg for brewed coffee, and most experts suggest keeping total caffeine at 200 mg or less per day in pregnancy. 5
• A Cochrane review of 27 trials in 4,041 women examined interventions including ginger, acupressure, and vitamin B6 for nausea and vomiting in early pregnancy, and found the evidence for any single one limited and inconsistent, with no studies of chamomile identified. 6

Which option makes sense?

Ginger tea is the one with real safety data behind it, at roughly 1,000 mg of ginger a day across studies. Peppermint and chamomile are pleasant, low-risk choices without strong efficacy evidence, and any caffeinated tea still counts toward the 200 mg daily ceiling.

Disclosure: Pregnancy Smart makes supplements in this category. The comparison above is written to inform, not to steer readers toward or away from our brand.