How to Avoid Travel Sickness

We’ve all felt sick at some point and it’s a pretty miserable feeling. Most often it’s due to having a tummy bug, when it’s usually accompanied by diarrhoea and crampy stomach pains. This sort of vomiting happens when you get an infection in your gut which causes inflammation and irritation. But travel sickness is all about your brain.

What Are the Symptoms of Travel Sickness?

Travel or motion sickness can make you feel sick or vomit. You may also feel sweaty and weak, produce more saliva and get a headache. Motion sickness can also lead to vertigo – dizziness with a spinning sensation.

Travel sickness usually settles once you reach the end of your journey, although it can sometimes last for a few hours after you’ve stopped moving. Less often, you may also feel as if the ground is moving under you after you stop travelling. This is called 'mal de debarquement' and it’s more common after long sea journeys. It usually settles within a few hours.

What Causes Travel Sickness?

Travel sickness is down to your brain getting conflicting messages. Your inner ear plays a major role in controlling your balance. Each ear contains three connected semi-circular canals. When you turn your head, the fluid inside these semi-circular canals shifts, triggering messages to your brain as it moves tiny hairs lining the canals.

Nearby within your inner ear sit two tiny organs called the utricle and saccule – these send nerve messages to the brain about back-and-forth motion. These messages tell your brain what position your head is in and when it’s moving.

If you’re travelling, especially in bumpy conditions, your inner ears are constantly sending messages to your brain that you’re moving in different directions. However, your eyes also send messages to tell your brain what position your head is in. In addition, your brain gets messages from your muscles and joints about the position of other body parts.

If you’re travelling and concentrating on something close to you, your eyes send messages that you’re not moving, while your inner ears say you are. Even if you have your eyes closed, moving in different directions can mean your brain gets overloaded by messages from your inner ears. This can result in motion sickness.

What Triggers Travel Sickness?

The obvious answer, of course, is travel! But certain types of travel are more likely than others to trigger it. Travelling in rocky conditions – either in rough weather or where you’re constantly going around corners – is more likely to send conflicting messages to your brain.  

You’re also more likely to develop travel sickness if your eyes and inner ears are sending different messages to your brain. A common example of this is reading in a car, where you’re concentrating on the page and your eyes are telling your brain you’re not moving.

Travelling after eating a heavy meal, or strong smells you encounter during your journey, can also bring on travel sickness.

How Do I Avoid Travel Sickness?

Keep Movement to a Minimum

Obviously, you can’t guarantee that you won’t encounter turbulence during a trip. However, if you’re very prone to travel sickness you may want to avoid the sort of travel that’s most likely to bring on symptoms.

• For car travel, this includes potholed, bumpy or very windy roads.
• If you’re travelling by sea, you’re more likely to encounter storms in winter. If you’re on holiday and thinking of taking a day trip on a boat, check the weather forecast and plan your outing on a calm day.
• Sitting over the wing in an aeroplane, in the middle of a boat or the front seat of a car means you’ll be moving less.

The Eyes (and Ears) Have It

• Don’t read or scroll through your phone. This sends messages to your brain that you’re not in motion, in direct contrast to the messages from your inner ears. The same applies to watching a film on a plane, especially if you’re going through any turbulence.
• Close your eyes and try to sleep. This stops any messages from your eyes, and your brain may be less sensitive to motion signals from your inner ears when it’s resting.
• Get a window seat. This means that if your eyes are open, you can focus on the horizon. However, don’t confuse your brain further by looking at moving objects – waves, cars coming past you etc.
• Listen to music or an audiobook with your eyes closed. This may make your brain less sensitive to the motion signals it’s getting from your inner ears.

Nose and Tummy

• Don’t wear strong perfume (and try not to sit next to someone who is wearing it).
• On a plane, avoid seats near where the food is being prepared.
• Eat a light meal before you travel and avoid eating during the journey. If you’re travelling in a car with others, ask them to avoid eating strong-smelling food while you’re travelling.
• Take regular small sips of water.
• On boats, stay upwind of the engine room so the smell of diesel doesn’t assault your nostrils.
• In cars, keep the window open and breathe in fresh air – the draught can also make you feel less sweaty, which can relieve the sensation of sickness. However, close the windows if you’re in heavy traffic, to avoid the smell of exhaust fumes.

Do Natural Remedies Help Travel Sickness?

Ginger is widely used for several conditions that make you feel sick, including morning sickness and travel sickness. The evidence for it isn’t strong but it won’t do any harm. Ginger ale doesn’t contain much ginger but you could keep a supply of ginger biscuits to nibble on.

Many people swear by acupressure bands which you wear on your wrists. They’re definitely worth trying  - even if they don’t work for you, they don’t cause any side effects and won’t make your sickness worse. Put them on before you travel and keep them on until you arrive.

There is evidence that focusing on breathing in and out slowly (in through your nose, out through your mouth) can help if you’re feeling sick due to motion sickness. You may also find that a cool damp flannel placed on your forehead helps.

Can Medication Prevent Travel Sickness?

Hyoscine is often effective for travel sickness. It works by damping down motion signals going to your brain. It’s available to buy from pharmacists as a tablet (including a soluble form for children). If you’re already feeling sick, you may absorb food and medicine less effectively from your stomach. Hyoscine works best if you take it ½-1 hour before you start travelling. However, there is a patch form available on prescription – this should be applied to the skin behind your ear 5-6 hours before you start travelling.

Side effects of hyoscine include dry mouth, blurred vision and drowsiness so you should avoid using it if you’re driving.

Antihistamines are available to buy from your pharmacist for motion sickness. If you’re looking for a motion sickness medicine for a child, you may find a drowsy-making antihistamine helpful. Ask your pharmacist for advice.

Buccastem® is a brand of medicine called prochlorperazine. You place the tablet inside your mouth between your gum and the inside of your lip. Because it’s absorbed directly from here, it can be useful if you’re already feeling sick, when swallowed tablets may not work as well. It’s only available on prescription.

Motion sickness can be a challenging condition to manage, but with the right guidance and support, you can find relief and enjoy your travels to the fullest. For more articles like this, make sure you explore our blog and guides.