Drink plenty of water – maintaining hydration will help alleviate any symptoms. Follow up with small, light snacks (such as dry crackers) during the trip. Eat a small meal before you begin your journey, but avoid greasy foods. If you are already prone to motion sickness you should: Don’t look at moving objects, read a book, or use a mobile phone. Use the headrest or a pillow to keep your head still and your eyes fixed on the horizon. (Drivers rarely experience motion sickness: it’s also more common among back-seat passengers.) If you are travelling by car, do the driving or travel in the front passenger seat. On a cruise ship, ask if you can transfer to a central cabin. You are less likely to experience motion sickness in a train’s forward cars, in the wing seats on a plane, or on the ship’s upper deck. If motion sickness strikes, try the following: There are steps you can take, along with medication, to prevent motion sickness or reduce its symptoms. Definitely not a great way to start or end a holiday! While rarely serious, it can make travelling unpleasant due to the nausea, sweating, and dizziness that typically results. Motion sickness is usually caused by a disturbance of the body’s balance system: The motion you see is different from the motion sensed by the vestibular system of your inner ear.Īnyone can get motion sickness, although children and pregnant women are especially vulnerable. In very rough seas nearly every passenger will get seasick, which is a form of motion sickness, to some degree.īut, on average 3 in every 10 travellers can expect to experience motion sickness during a journey – regardless of whether they’re going by ship, plane, train, bus, or car. Modern cruise ships have stabilisers that help to smooth out rough seas, but even a slight swell can ‘destabilise’ some passengers – especially first-timers. Just ask the passengers aboard Carnival Spirit as it weathered waves around 10 metres high overnight while waiting to enter Sydney Harbour last week. Ensure that these medications are safe for you and won’t interact with any other medications you may already be taking.Whether you’re in a tiny ‘tinny’ on a lake or in the middle of the Pacific aboard a 300-metre luxury cruise ship, seasickness is no fun. Avoid them when driving or operating machinery.Īlways consult with your health care provider or travel medicine specialist, especially if you have other existing health conditions. This is made worse when combined with alcohol. Most of the drugs listed above can make you drowsy and reduce coordination. Do not rub your eyes after applying a patch - it can cause dilation of one or both pupils.Īll medications come with a trade-off, in terms of possible unwanted or harmful side effects. Side effects and interactions with other medications may be more plentiful. Patches are particularly useful for long trips. It is most commonly prescribed as a transdermal (absorbed through the skin) patch that is applied behind the ear and only needs to be changed every 72 hours. Scopolamine : (Transderm-Scop ® ) Belongs to a different class of drugs called anticholinergics. A favorite of ship doctors, it helps you to sleep off your nausea. Promethazine: (Phenergan ® ) Another type of antihistamine. Several studies report cinnarizine as the most effective antihistamine with the fewest side effects. However, it has been known to cause Parkinson’s disease, especially in the elderly. Not recommended for children.Ĭinnarizine: (Stugeron ® ) Is an antihistamine worth mentioning, though it is not marketed in the U.S. Now, available over the counter as Antivert ® or Bonine ®. Meclizine: Formerly only available by prescription. Probably the most sedating of the OTC antihistamines. Also safe for children.ĭiphenhydramine: Commonly known as Benadryl ®, it is available in a variety of products, including liquids for children. May be used for pediatrics at the recommended doses.Ĭyclizine: (Marezine ®, Bonine For Kids ®, Cyclivert ® ). These include:ĭimenhydrinate : Sold as Dramamine ® or Driminate ® (Gravol ® in Canada). They are more effective when used to prevent motion sickness rather than treating it. Some OTC antihistamines are also commonly taken for motion sickness. (Note: brand names listed are those that are available in the U.S.) Fortunately, there are also various medications available which can help to prevent as well as treat symptoms. In our last blog, we looked at strategies to prevent motion sickness.
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