If you're hitting the road, hopping on a plane or sailing the high seas this summer, make sure that motion sickness isn't part of your travel plan with these simple and effective ideas.
Wear an acupressure wristband
These are specially designed for people who get carsick, seasick or airsick and they really work. The bands are fitted with beads that are positioned to stimulate the "Inner Gate" P6 point, which is three finger-widths from the centre of your left wrist crease on your inner arm.
A study at California's Humboldt State University found that stimulating this point resulted in a significant reduction of nausea and dizziness. If you haven't got a band, apply pressure gradually to the point with your right thumb.
Take ginger tablets or capsules
Long used in ancient Chinese, Indian and Greco-Roman medicine to treat headaches and stomach upsets, this warming spice takes effect almost immediately and has none of the side effects of conventional anti-nausea drugs, such as drowsiness.
Research consistently proves ginger's efficacy, with a recent Danish study of naval cadets finding that those who took ginger had much less vomiting and fewer cold sweats than the cadets that took nothing.
Take 100mg to 200mg of a standardised extract in capsule or tablet form; or, chew fresh ginger, drink ginger tea (made by pouring one cup of boiling water over one or two teaspoons of grated ginger), or suck on crystallised ginger.
Try homoeopathic remedies
Take one dose of an appropriate remedy just before you set off and then as necessary during your journey. There are two that are particularly good for stopping nausea associated with travel sickness: ipecacuanha and tabacum. You can obtain these products from a naturopath or homoeopath. Visit www.atms.com.au to find a practitioner near you.
Your say: Have you or your family suffered travel sickness before? How do ease the quease? Share with us below...
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