Travel Sickness - Natural Remedies
For many families the thought of travel is marred by experiences of motion sickness. While many children grow out of the tendency, many people must deal with this problem life-long. Proprietary drugs used for this problem have unwanted side effects. The severity of symptoms for sufferers can be quite debilitating and take days to fully recover from. Fortunately, there is help available from herbal medicine.
What is motion sickness?
Motion sickness stems from a problem with communication in the body itself. For example, let's say you are sitting in the car and reading. Your eyes are telling your brain that you are not moving but the movement of the car is telling your brain a different story. Your body is constantly readjusting its balance - however slightly to stay seated upright. What your body is feeling is out of sync with what the senses are feeling. In essence, this set of conflicting or mixed signals sets in train a series of responses that we recognize as motion sickness.
The symptoms of motion sickness include: headache, nausea, dizziness, cold sweats and, of course, vomiting.
Recommendations
Unfortunately some children seem to have motions sickness no matter what you do. However, the following recommendations can dramatically reduce the symptoms of motion sickness and make the travel more enjoyable for everyone.
Keep fresh air flowing. If in a car and you have ventilation vents for the rear seats of the car, enable these to have air flowing over the child. You may have the windows open a little to encourage the air flow.
Fumes such as petrol make things worse so sit the child where there is the least amount of odor. Check your car for leaking exhaust fumes.
If old enough, encourage your child to look outside the moving object they're traveling in. When they are in a boat they should avoid looking inside the cabin but instead look at the water and the horizon. It travelling by car try to have them look at the distant countryside by playing a game of I Spy with things outside the car. This also helps by providing distraction, but start it early, at the first indication or suspicion of symptoms.
Encourage your child to be comfortable in the car by loosening any coats, collars, belts and so forth (but not the seat-belt safety restraint).
Make frequent stops on long trips so the child can get out of the car and walk around.
Avoid the following foods: fatty fast foods, carbonated drinks and sweets and cordials.
Keep the snacks light and plain with an emphasis on vegetables. Keep the snacks sugar and salt free.
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Keep the child occupied - so that they are not thinking about the possibility of becoming sick. Lots of musical tapes and singing along the way will assist with this - as will frequent stops.
Herbal remedies
Ginger is a herb for any form of motions sickness. When travelling on holidays be sure to have a thermos of warm ginger tea and lemon tea. Grate 2 teaspoons of fresh ginger and place this in a teapot with 200 ml of water and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. Let this stand for about 5 minutes. Strain this into as thermos. Give the following amounts 30 minutes before you leave and then small sips every half hour for the remainder of the trip.
children aged 3 - 5 years 50 ml
children 6 - 12 years 100 ml
Chamomile and peppermint are also quite soothing for the stomach. They can be given as herbal teas or the peppermint can be taken as a lozenge. Another digestive calming and nervine that can help allay the sickness and bring about a sense of tranquillity is as follows. It can be used as a tonic which makes it helpful for long car trips.
1 part catnip tincture
1 part chamomile tincture
1 part lemon balm tincture
1 part valerian root tincture
1/2 part lady's slipper tincture
1/2 part hawthorn tincture
1/2 vegetable glycerine
Combine all the ingredients in a dark amber jar with a secure top. Dose - give 1/2 to 1 teaspoon half an hour before travel and then half an hour into the travel, if this is needed. Conclusion This troublesome complaint can significantly reduce the enjoyment of travel and family outings. The solutions are not perfect but the herbal approach is a powerful one that can offer much needed relief by preventing development of the symptoms. Don't rely simply on the herbs though, this is a condition where some travel planning (frequent rests, ventilation, distant views, etc) also plays an important role.
References
Brewin, L. 2002, Natural Health for Children. ABC Books.
Hoffmann, D. 2000, The New Holistic Herbal. Element Pub.
Romm, A. 2000, Naturally Healthy Babies and Children. Storey Books.
Shaw, N. 2002, Herbalism. Element.
07.01.2008. 20:37
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