Motion Sickness: Cause, Cure And Prevention Strategies

Motion Sickness: Motion sickness can make traveling unpleasant. It causes dizziness, nausea, breaking out in cold sweat or headache, and vomiting. It is a common condition that happens when you’re in motion. Many people around us suffer from motion sickness during their car, train, airplane, boat, or amusement park rides.

Motion Sickness: Cause

Motion sickness occurs when the movement you see differs from what your inner ear senses. This discrepancy between vision and inner ear signals sends conflicting messages to your brain about movement, causing motion sickness. Here’s an example of how it happens:

-- Your eyes register movement and send a message to your brain that you’re moving.
-- Meanwhile, your inner ear senses that you’re sitting still and sends your brain a message that you’re not moving.
-- Because of this conflict in messages, the brain can’t process it properly, causing motion sickness.

Motion Sickness: Prevention Strategies

The best way to prevent motion sickness is to avoid situations that cause motion sickness. But, that is not always possible. Here are some strategies that can help you avoid motion sickness:

-- Sit in the front of a car or bus.
-- Choose a window seat on flights, buses, and trains.
-- If possible, try lying down and shutting your eyes.
-- Sleeping or looking at the horizon, would also help.
-- Stay hydrated, drink water frequently and adequately.
-- Ensure good ventilation in the vehicle.  
-- -- Avoid activities that focus your vision inside the car, such as reading or using a phone.
-- Eat light before or during the journey.
-- Avoid heavy, greasy, or spicy foods.
-- Take stops when feeling uneasy.
-- Distract yourself with activities, such as listening to music.
-- Use flavored lozenges, such as ginger candy.

Motion Sickness: Cure

There are medicines to prevent or treat motion sickness. However, it is not recommended to take medicines without consulting a doctor. Consult with a certified healthcare professional to decide if you should take medicines for motion sickness. Then, follow the advice.