Several common foods can help calm an upset stomach, and most of them work by doing one of three things: absorbing excess acid, slowing down an irritated digestive tract, or replacing fluids and nutrients you’ve lost. The best choice depends on what’s bothering you, whether that’s nausea, cramping, diarrhea, or general queasiness.
Ginger for Nausea
Ginger is one of the most reliable natural options for settling nausea specifically. Its active compounds block a receptor in the gut that triggers the vomiting reflex, which is why it has a long track record in both traditional medicine and clinical research. You can use fresh ginger sliced into hot water, chew on crystallized ginger, or sip flat ginger ale (though many commercial ginger ales contain very little real ginger). Ginger tea or ginger chews from a health food store tend to deliver more of the active compounds than sodas do.
A small piece of fresh ginger, roughly a half-inch slice steeped in hot water for five to ten minutes, is a reasonable starting point. If you’re dealing with morning sickness, motion sickness, or post-surgical nausea, ginger is worth trying before reaching for anything stronger.
Plain Starchy Foods
White rice, plain toast, crackers, and boiled potatoes are gentle on an irritated stomach because they’re low in fiber, low in fat, and easy to break down. They don’t require your digestive system to work hard, which matters when your gut is already inflamed or in spasm. These foods also help absorb excess stomach acid, which can reduce that burning, churning feeling.
You may have heard of the BRAT diet: bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast. It’s been a go-to recommendation for decades, but the CDC and pediatric guidelines now consider it unnecessarily restrictive. While those four foods are fine choices, sticking only to them can leave you short on protein, fat, and calories right when your body needs fuel to recover. A better approach is to start with bland, starchy foods and gradually add lean proteins, yogurt, fruits, and cooked vegetables as your stomach allows.
Bananas and Applesauce
Bananas and applesauce deserve their own mention because of pectin, a type of soluble fiber they both contain. Pectin thickens as it hits stomach acid, which can slow digestion in a helpful way and reduce diarrhea symptoms. Studies in children with recurrent diarrhea found that as little as 2.5 grams of pectin per day reduced digestive symptoms, likely through this thickening effect in the stomach. A single medium banana contains roughly 1 to 1.5 grams of pectin, so eating a couple over the course of the day adds up.
Bananas also replace potassium, an electrolyte you lose quickly during vomiting or diarrhea. They’re soft, require almost no chewing, and rarely trigger further nausea, making them one of the safest first foods to try when your stomach is unsettled.
Broth and Clear Fluids
When your stomach is at its worst, liquids are often all you can manage, and broth is one of the best options. It replaces sodium and fluids, provides a small amount of energy, and goes down easily. Bone broth in particular is rich in amino acids like glutamine and glycine, which support the cells lining your intestinal wall and help maintain the gut barrier. Research published in the European Medical Journal found that these amino acids can reduce intestinal permeability and help regulate inflammation, particularly in people with inflammatory bowel conditions.
Chicken broth, vegetable broth, and miso soup all work. Sip slowly rather than drinking a full cup at once, especially if you’ve been vomiting. Room temperature or warm broth tends to be easier on the stomach than very hot liquids.
Chamomile and Peppermint Tea
Chamomile tea contains a flavonoid called apigenin that has anti-inflammatory and antispasmodic properties. It can help reduce the cramping and inflammation that come with an upset stomach, and the warm liquid itself promotes relaxation of the digestive tract. A cup of chamomile tea between meals is a simple option when your stomach feels tight or crampy.
Peppermint tea works through a different mechanism: it relaxes the smooth muscle in your digestive tract, which can relieve spasms and bloating. The American College of Gastroenterology has recommended peppermint oil for relief of irritable bowel syndrome symptoms. There’s one important caveat, though. Because peppermint relaxes the muscle at the top of your stomach, it can worsen acid reflux. If your stomach trouble involves heartburn or a burning sensation in your chest, skip the peppermint and stick with chamomile. Enteric-coated peppermint oil capsules are designed to bypass the stomach and dissolve in the intestines, reducing this reflux risk, but plain peppermint tea doesn’t offer that protection.
Yogurt and Fermented Foods
Plain yogurt with live cultures can be surprisingly soothing, even when other dairy feels like a bad idea. The fermentation process breaks down much of the lactose, making it easier to digest, and the beneficial bacteria may help restore balance in your gut. A meta-analysis of trials in children with diarrhea found that certain probiotic strains shortened the duration of symptoms by roughly two days compared to placebo, though results varied across studies.
Stick with plain, unsweetened yogurt. Flavored varieties are loaded with sugar, which can pull water into the intestines and make diarrhea worse. If you tolerate yogurt well, other fermented foods like kefir or miso can offer similar benefits. These aren’t instant fixes, but they support recovery over the course of a day or two.
Foods to Avoid While Your Stomach Recovers
What you leave off your plate matters as much as what you put on it. Fatty, greasy, and fried foods slow gastric emptying and can intensify nausea. Spicy foods irritate an already inflamed stomach lining. Raw vegetables and high-fiber foods like beans and whole grains require significant digestive effort and can worsen bloating and cramping.
Caffeine and alcohol both stimulate acid production and can dehydrate you further. Citrus fruits and tomato-based foods are acidic enough to aggravate an irritated stomach. Dairy beyond plain yogurt, particularly milk, cheese, and ice cream, can be difficult to digest when your gut is compromised because the enzymes that break down lactose may be temporarily reduced during a stomach illness.
Carbonated drinks are a mixed bag. Some people find that small sips of flat ginger ale help with nausea, but the carbonation itself can cause bloating and gas. If you reach for a soda, let it go flat first.
A Practical Recovery Sequence
In the first few hours of stomach trouble, especially if you’re vomiting, stick to small sips of water, broth, or an oral rehydration solution. Once you can keep liquids down for an hour or two, try a few bites of something bland: a few crackers, a quarter of a banana, a small bowl of plain rice. Ginger tea can help if nausea is your main symptom.
Over the next 12 to 24 hours, gradually expand to soft, easy-to-digest foods: toast, applesauce, boiled potatoes, plain yogurt, scrambled eggs. Eat small amounts frequently rather than full meals. Most stomach bugs and episodes of food-related upset resolve within one to three days with this kind of gentle eating pattern. If you’re still unable to keep fluids down after 24 hours, or if you notice blood in your stool or vomit, that’s a sign something more serious may be going on.