Tips against travel sickness in children

Traveling nausea on car rides is common among children

07/15/2014

„Mom, I'm sick“ - a phrase that is familiar to many parents when they are in the car with their children. Sometimes the little ones suffer so much from the travel nausea that they have to vomit and the journey can not continue. But with the help of a few tricks and tips, parents can make their journey much more enjoyable for their offspring.

No general explanation of why not every child is affected
For many families a well-known scenario: The luggage is finally stowed, the children sit strapped on the back seat and the drive by car in the long-awaited vacation can finally start. But after a few kilometers, the little one is suddenly bad, sometimes so violent that the ride must be interrupted immediately. Whether or how bad children in the car is bad, but it is quite different. Even doctors do not know a blanket explanation for the fact that some are not affected at all and in others nausea and vomiting occur all the more. „In some, the equilibrium organ is apparently so sensitive that above all the centrifugal forces in curves can lead to nausea“, so Hermann Josef Kahl, pediatrician in Dusseldorf, opposite the news agency „dpa“.

Kinetosis is caused by „confusion“ of the brain
The so-called „travel sickness“ According to Kahl, (kinetosis) is very unpleasant, but harmless in most cases. The nausea is caused by a „confusion“ of the brain, because each person is usually based on the one hand through the perception of the eyes and on the other hand on the sense of balance in the inner ear. What matters is, however, which information is passed on from the orientation systems to the brain: if the received stimuli match, everything is fine. However, if the brain receives contradictory signals, it switches into one „alarm“ and as a result the body reacts with nausea, dizziness, and general malaise. In the car, this happens relatively quickly when there is more movement than can be seen, which is why children are particularly distressed when reading, for example.

Better look out the window than read
Nevertheless, according to Kahl, parents can do a lot to make their journey in the car a little more pleasant. Above all, a lot of fresh air is important, so you should take breaks at regular intervals, in which the children can move outside the car. In addition, the expert recommends that vulnerable children should not eat so much before a long drive. It is also helpful if parents let their children look out of the window as much as possible - because curves and bumps are also perceived visually, whereby a difference in perception between eye and inner ear can be avoided. On the other hand, looking at things downwards tends to promote nausea, which is why books, laptops, tablets and board games on the go, especially for vulnerable children, are not an appropriate pastime for driving. (No)