Symptoms

• Motion sickness starts with a feeling of general unease and progresses to cold sweats, nausea, dizziness and vomiting. A person's skin will be pale, they may have a headache, with an increase in salivation and fatigue can set in. The CDC says that some people experience delayed stomach emptying and changes in gastric rhythm with motion sickness.
  
  

Risk Factors

• Risk factors for developing motion sickness include riding in any type of moving object, especially one with poor ventilation, being under age 12, and being frightened or anxious during transportation. People who are more susceptible to nausea and vomiting normally are more prone to motion sickness.
  
  

Diagnosis

• A physician can usually diagnose motion sickness just by reviewing the symptoms and the situation in which they occurred. No other tests are usually necessary.
  
  

Treatment

• Antihistamine medications and anticholinergic agents are used to treat motion sickness. There are oral and transdermal medications available. The CDC says that oral medications should be taken at least 30 to 60 minutes before traveling. Scopolamine is the anticholinergic of choice for treating motion sickness when a person is going on a long voyage. The patch form of the medication has fewer side effects than the oral form and is easier to use because it requires fewer doses. A list of the five antihistamine medications recommended for motion sickness is available on the CDC website.
  
  

Warning

• All medications used to treat motion sickness impair alertness and should be used with caution when operating heavy machinery, driving and doing underwater activities. People with certain medical conditions such as narrow-angle glaucoma, urinary retention, and gastrointestinal obstruction should not take anticholinergic medications. People with liver, kidney, pulmonary and cardiovascular diseases should use the medications with caution, and only certain medications are recommended for children.
  
  

Prevention/Solution

• To avoid or lessen symptoms of motion sickness, sit in the front seat of cars, in the front of trains next to windows, over the front edge of the wing on a plane, and get a cabin on a ship in the front or middle of the upper deck. Other things that help are facing forward when traveling, focusing on the horizon, resting the head against a seat back and keeping still, eating crackers and not reading, not smoking, and avoiding spicy or greasy foods and alcohol.