What should you know about non-drowsy motion sickness?

Motion sickness happens when the brain receives conflicting signals from the eyes and the balance organs of the inner ear. Car journeys, boats, aircraft, and amusement rides can trigger nausea, sweating, dizziness, headache, or vomiting. Medicines used for prevention may work better when taken before travel, but the right choice depends on age, pregnancy, medical conditions, and other medicines.

A product labelled non-drowsy may still make an individual sleepy, dizzy, or less alert. Some medicines can also cause dry mouth or blurred vision. Read the label and check with a pharmacist before travel, especially for a child or someone with glaucoma, urinary problems, or breathing disease.

Choose a seat with the least movement, look at the horizon, keep fresh air moving, and avoid reading or looking at a screen. Eat a light meal and sip fluids; heavy meals and alcohol can make symptoms harder to manage. If using medicine, follow the label and try it before an important journey so you know whether it affects alertness. A Travel Health Consultation can help with a longer or complicated trip.

Seek medical advice if vomiting continues after travel, fluids cannot stay down, urine becomes very infrequent, or there is severe headache, fainting, confusion, chest pain, or significant abdominal pain. Get urgent help for blood or green material in vomit, breathing difficulty, or a new neurological problem. Symptoms that occur without movement may have another cause and deserve assessment.

Ask which prevention option fits your age and health, when to take it, whether it affects driving, and what to do if nausea or Vomiting breaks through.