By Admin,
Motion sickness can be a fairly debilitating illness, affecting more than 43% of children aged between 7 and 12 years old according to a 2014 study. Motion sickness happens to some children because the underlying systems in their brains are still in the development stage, which makes them more susceptible.
What triggers motion sickness symptoms?
The easiest way to explain that queasy feeling is those times when only some senses are experiencing motion. For instance, when a child is sitting in the back seat of a car traveling along a winding road, they will feel the turns and twists but can’t see them because they are too short to see out of the window.
Motion sickness can also be caused when watching a movie with a lot of jumpy camera work – the eyes will see the motion, but there is no physical experience. The inner ear is responsible for balance, and if it senses that there’s a difference between what it and the rest of the body is feeling, it can bring on symptoms like fatigue, cold sweats, irritability, nausea, vomiting, and loss of appetite.
How to prevent your child from experiencing travel sickness
Preventing motion sickness is definitely better than trying to do something once the queasiness starts. Watch what your child eats before the trip – avoid things like sugary or greasy foods since these could cause nausea while on the road. Traveling on an empty stomach can also trigger nausea, however, so let your child have something bland and small to eat before you leave. Ginger snaps are an excellent snack to have during travel as ginger has been found to reduce the severity of nausea. If your child gets thirsty while you are on the road, encourage him/her to have small sips often, instead of drinking a whole lot in one go.
It can make a big difference where your child is sitting in the car – while it is safest for your child to sit in the back seat if he/she is too young to sit in the front seat, it does increase the chances of motion sickness developing. Instead, let your child sit in the middle of the back seat so that he/she can see out of the front window.
Leave video games, movies, or reading for when you reach your destination – these activities tend to bring on feelings of nausea, more than likely because of the motion or the appearance of motion with the games and movies, and the words jumping around when reading. Avoid nausea by letting your child rather listen to audiobooks, music, or podcasts instead.
Ventilation – it’s essential to have a continuous flow of fresh air in the vehicle because breathing in stale air can also trigger a bout of sickness. See to it that air can flow freely through a few windows while you are on the road.
Take short breaks – if your child tends to get travel sickness, then it’s best to stop the cause of his/her nausea by taking short breaks during your trip. Lying on his/her back for a little while, with a cold, damp cloth on the forehead can also help the queasiness to subside.
Medication – although you might not want to give your child medication if he/she isn’t sick, there are times when it is unavoidable, as with motion sickness. However, the main thing to remember is buy from a regulated pharmacy, only use medication when absolutely necessary, and to follow the instructions carefully.
Be prepared!
Even if you follow the above steps, there could be a time when the motion sickness causes your child to vomit. It is best to be prepared in case this should happen, by taking along an empty container or plastic bag for this purpose, as well as an extra set of clothing, in case of accidents!
