What is vomiting?

Vomiting is the forceful ejection of the contents of your stomach and upper digestive system through your mouth. It’s also known as throwing up or being sick.

Vomiting is a reflex that helps your body get rid of substances that may be harmful. Most people will experience vomiting at some point. It’s a symptom rather than a diagnosis.

This article is about vomiting in adults and children over 12 years of age. See vomiting in children for information relating to vomiting in children aged under 12 years.

What symptoms are related to vomiting?

When you vomit your abdominal muscles have strong contractions. It’s different from reflux or regurgitation which happen without any abdominal contractions.

Vomiting can sometimes be forceful. Projectile vomiting can send your stomach contents more than a metre away.

Other symptoms that you may feel alongside vomiting are:

• Nausea — the unpleasant sensation when you think you are about to vomit (‘feeling sick’). Once you have vomited, the feeling of nausea may ease or go away.
• Mouthwatering — your mouth will often start to water before you vomit.
• Abdominal pain — this is pain below your ribs, including stomach cramps.
• Diarrhoea — this is a common symptoms of gastroenteritis.
• Fever
• Tiredness

Retching is similar to vomiting, because it involves forceful stomach contractions. However, with retching, you will not bring up anything from your stomach.

Ongoing vomiting can lead to dehydration. This is where your body has lost more fluid than it has taken in. Dehydration can be dangerous, as your body doesn't have enough water to function properly.

CHECK YOUR SYMPTOMS — Use the Symptom Checker and find out if you need to seek medical help.

What causes vomiting?

Vomiting can be a sudden isolated bout of vomiting (acute) that usually lasts less than 2 days. Vomiting can also be part of a pattern of ongoing or recurring attacks (chronic). Some underlying causes of vomiting are serious.

Causes of acute vomiting

The table describes some conditions that can cause acute vomiting.

Conditions that can cause acute vomiting.

Condition	Description
Gastroenteritis	An infection of your digestive tract. One of the most common causes of sudden nausea and vomiting. This usually clears up without any specific treatment within 2 days.
Food poisoning	Some bacteria can cause food poisoning by releasing toxins (poisons) into food that is not stored properly.
Poisoning	Swallowing poisons or irritants can cause nausea and vomiting, drowsiness, fits and seizures.
Motion sickness	This is more common in children but can also cause vomiting in adults.
Alcohol	Drinking too much alcohol can lead to nausea and vomiting.
Post-operative	If you have surgery, you can feel nauseous or vomit afterwards.
COVID-19	Nausea, diarrhoea and vomiting can all be symptoms of COVID-19.
Pancreatitis or hepatitis	Inflammation of your pancreas or liver can cause abdominal pain, vomiting and fever.
Raised intracranial pressure	Raised pressure in your skull can cause nausea and vomiting. This is a medical emergency.
Meningitis	This infection has sudden symptoms that include vomiting, fever, a stiff neck, photophobia (sensitivity to bright lights) and rash.
Diabetic ketoacidosis	If you are diabetic, vomiting can be a symptom of ketoacidosis.
Other acute medical conditions	For example, bowel obstruction or appendicitis.

Causes of chronic vomiting

The following conditions can cause chronic vomiting.

Conditions that can cause chronic vomiting.

Condition	Description
Radiation treatments	Vomiting can be a side effect of radiation treatment.
Pregnancy	Morning sickness is common during early pregnancy. It can cause nausea and vomiting at any time of the day, but often in the morning.
Migraine	If you get migraines, nausea and vomiting are common symptoms.
Food allergies or coeliac disease	Food allergies or food intolerance can cause chronic digestive symptoms, including vomiting.
Upper digestive tract disorders	Vomiting after meals can be caused by gastrointestinal reflux disease (GORD).
Gastroparesis	This is a delayed emptying of the stomach due to nerve damage. It can lead to nausea and vomiting after meals.
Kidney stones	Nausea and vomiting are symptoms of kidney stones, along with gripping pain in your back.
Mental health conditions	If you have anxiety or depression this may be associated with vomiting.
Functional nausea and vomiting	This is the name given to chronic nausea and vomiting for which there is no clear medical cause.

Vomiting can be a side effect of some medicines, such as:

• chemotherapy medicines used to treat cancer
• medications for heart conditions
• strong pain killers
• high doses of some vitamins

How is the cause of vomiting diagnosed?

If you have a short episode of vomiting, you may not find out the exact cause.

If you have ongoing or recurrent episodes of vomiting, you should see your doctor. They will investigate the cause of your vomiting.

They will ask about your symptoms and medical history and do a physical examination. Then your doctor may suggest tests, including:

• blood tests
• urine tests
• a pregnancy test

Sometimes, when it’s difficult to find a cause for recurrent vomiting, your doctor will suggest investigations such as an endoscopy or a CT scan to help with diagnosis.

Your doctor may suggest referring you to a gastroenterologist or neurologist.

ASK YOUR DOCTOR — Preparing for an appointment? Use the Question Builder for general tips on what to ask your GP or specialist.

When should I see my doctor?

If you are vomiting because of a simple case of gastroenteritis, you may be able to manage at home without needing to see a doctor.

But some underlying causes of vomiting can be more serious.

When to seek urgent care

You should go to a hospital's emergency department or call triple zero (000) for an ambulance if you:

• vomit blood or have what looks like coffee grounds in your vomit
• vomit bile — green vomit
• vomit faecal material (poo)
• have severe or constant tummy (abdominal) pain
• have a stiff neck and high temperature (fever)
• have a severe headache
• have bleeding from your bottom (rectum) or bloody diarrhoea
• have chest pain

Seek immediate medical attention, either from your doctor or from the emergency department, if you are vomiting and:

• have a high temperature (fever)
• have signs of dehydration
• can't take in more than a few sips of liquid or can't keep water down
• it continues for more than 48 hours
• are immunocompromised

Make an appointment to see your doctor if you have been vomiting and have lost weight without knowing why.

This article is about vomiting in adults and children over 12 years of age. See vomiting in children for information relating to vomiting in children aged under 12 years.

FIND A HEALTH SERVICE — The Service Finder can help you find doctors, pharmacies, hospitals and other health services.

How is vomiting treated?

Treatment for vomiting depends on the underlying cause. Some causes of vomiting will need specific treatment by your doctor. You can also ask your pharmacist for advice.

Self-care at home

If you are vomiting because you have gastroenteritis or food poisoning, make sure you stay hydrated. Try the following to help you manage at home:

• Stay home to avoid passing the infection to others.
• Drink plenty of clear fluids or oral rehydration solution to replace lost fluids — take small sips if you feel sick.
• Avoid fruit juice, cordial and sugary drinks.
• Avoid alcohol and caffeine.
• Adjust your diet until you get back to normal — eat bland foods, such as rice, pasta and crackers.

Medicines for vomiting

Oral rehydration solutions

You can buy these over the counter from your pharmacist or at the supermarket. They are better than plain water because they contain the right concentration of salts to replace both fluids and electrolytes.

Sports rehydration drinks are not recommended.

Antiemetic medicines

Antiemetics are medicines that help prevent and treat nausea and vomiting. Most antiemetics are prescription medicines.

Your doctor might prescribe an antiemetic to treat or prevent vomiting due to:

• migraines
• motion sickness
• having surgery (an operation)
• chemotherapy treatment
• radiation treatment

LOOKING FOR A MEDICINE? — To search by brand name or active ingredient, use the Medicines information search feature.

Ginger

Ginger may help with nausea and vomiting caused by pregnancy, chemotherapy and motion sickness.

Other treatment options

Dietary changes

Changes to your diet may help to reduce symptoms whilst you or your doctor work out what is causing the vomiting.

You can also discuss changes to your diet with a dietitian. Some things to try are:

• eating small meals
• reducing the fat content of your meals
• avoiding spicy food or ingredients that you know cause problems

Surgery

Some causes of vomiting, such as appendicitis or bowel obstruction, will need emergency surgery.

Can vomiting be prevented?

The most common cause of vomiting is viral gastroenteritis. It’s very infectious and is mostly spread by contact with another person who has the illness.

Things you can do to stop the spread of gastroenteritis:

• Wash your hands frequently, using a good handwashing technique.
• Practice good food safety.
• Do not prepare food for other people.
• Do not visit hospitals, aged care facilities, or swimming pools.
• When cleaning up vomit, wear gloves, an apron and a mask. Dispose of it in a tied plastic bag and wash your hands afterwards. Clean the area with detergent and warm water.

If a household member has gastroenteritis, everyone in the house should practice regular handwashing and good hygiene.

What are the complications of vomiting?

Dehydration is one of the most serious complications of vomiting. If you get dehydrated it can lead to a loss of electrolytes (salts and minerals your body needs to function properly).

To avoid dehydration, you should sip clear fluids or take an oral rehydration solution. Sip these slowly to avoid triggering more vomiting.

Ongoing vomiting may lead to weight loss. This happens if you can’t hold down your food, or nausea means that you don’t wanting to eat for a sustained period.

If you vomit within 2 hours of taking your oral contraceptive pill, you may not be protected from pregnancy. Refer to the instructions since you may need to use some other form of contraception, such as condoms, for the next 7 hormone pills. You can also call your pharmacist for advice.

Another complication of vomiting is aspiration. This is when food or liquid gets into your lungs. You can inhale vomit into your lungs if you are vomiting a lot. Aspiration and can cause pneumonia.

Violent vomiting can, very rarely, tear the lining of the oesophagus (food pipe).

Use the Symptom Checker to find out if you need to seek medical help.

Resources and support

Call healthdirect on 1800 022 222 to speak with a registered nurse, 24 hours, 7 days a week.

The Gut Foundation for information on gastrointestinal conditions.

NSW Multicultural Health Communication Service for information in your language.