Anti-Airsickness devices

[cambioso]

Does anyone out there know of a reliable anti-motion sickness device?
I seem to recall that Pilot Mag did a trial on a type of wristband that worked very well, but I can't find the article now!
And before you ask......My now legendary appauling flying is not making me sick!! It's for my darling wife who has a very delicate stomach even on B777s!
Thanks in anticipation,
Jez.

[tiggermoth]

Distraction?

Perhaps you could get her to help with the lookout, navigation or spark an interest in Aerial Photography?

I understand that the more visual clues of orientation then the less liklihood of sickness - but I'm no expert. Is there a doctor in the house here I wonder?

[Floppy Link]

I got some acupressure wristbands from a well known UK large chemist chain situated at the end of the legs...cost less than a tenner.

I have no idea if they work for airsickness 'cos the last time I felt ill was when P2 to EESDL, or was it Hueymeister at low level about 15 years ago, and at the mo I'm temporarily grounded...

...but I can tell you that they work wonders for chemotherapy induced nausea. Used to feel shoite :yuk: and run down :\ after the treatment, now I just feel run down :\. I'll be finished with them in January...one careful owner and all that...

[Cricket23]

I started a thread on this a little while ago. See http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?t=254924

The wristband that you refer to in the pilot mag are called Relief Bands. They cost £80 in the UK, but if you can import them from the States, they only cost $80.

A cheaper alternative was suggested by poster #23 who suggested natural ginger root pills, which are availble from Holland & Barrett. I haven't had a chance to try them yet so can't comment.

C23

[Oxeagle]

Admittedly I have always been skeptical about the effectiveness of writsbands, but yesterday I put them to the test for the first time. I was due to fly, but I had a bad stomach and was feeling a little unwell. It was too nice a day to pass up, so I decided what the hell, i'll go up and see how I feel. I had a pack of Kwells air sickness tablets with me, but I decided against them as i've found they tend to knock me out after flying. Then I remembered I had a set of wristbands in my headset bag for emergencies. Couldn't hurt, I decided, and do you know what? That was one of the best flights i've had in a long time! Didn't feel the slightest bit queasy at any time! Maybe they had no affect, know knows? but I will have those with me in future just in case :ok:

[IO540]

How can a wristband work??

If something like can work, there must be a whole as yet undiscovered field of physics! Maybe there is a whole parallel universe.

IMHO the best anti-airsickness device is to ensure the person has a clear view forward. Lots of children get sick in the back of cars and planes, but they are find sitting up on a thick cushion so they can see forward.

[Oxeagle]

IO540, I honestly don't know, I reckon it's more of a placebo effect than anything else but whatever it is, it certainly helped me out yesterday!

Ox

[Cricket23]

IO540 - re how they work, have a look at the answer from Genghis on the link I posted above. It seems reasonable to me. I guess there's lots of things about medicine that we don't understand, but if the work, then who cares.

C23

[dwshimoda]

I have a friend who gets air sick and sea sick, but he really wanted to come flying. One of the FI's at my club suggested getting him to do some flying.

Once we'd left and were cruising, I got him to take the controls, and ended up letting him bring us all the way onto finals - obviously whilst keeping control myself.

Not once did he feel sick at all, and now he flys at every opportunity, and doesn't even need to have his hands on the yoke anymore.

Perhaps if you got yor wife to have a little fly it would distract her, and make the experience more fun?

DW

[tecoma]

How can a wristband work??
IMHO the best anti-airsickness device is to ensure the person has a clear view forward. Lots of children get sick in the back of cars and planes, but they are find sitting up on a thick cushion so they can see forward.
They are supposed to be placed over the P6 acupuncture point at the wrist, that point supposedly being specific for nausea. I can't say whether they work or not from personal experience, but pressure at that point has been reported to be useful for postoperative nausea. I can say from personal experince that ginger extract works well for me, both for motion sickness on the ground and in the air. With most forms of nausea multiple simultaneous approaches are better than single ones... so good view out, plenty of fresh air, smooth flight (I wish) and distraction therapy by being made to look out of the aircraft. In my experience being made to read the map head down in the cockpit is a bad idea! The other things may help, even if they are only relying on the placebo effect, and at least they do no harm (unlike Kwells and similar).

[gingernut]

Boots used to sell "Seabands," a wristband which places pressure on strategic pressure points- (or some such wizardry which I don't quite understand).

They seem to work well for pregnant ladies with nausea, so it may be worth a try.

[tecoma]

Boots used to sell "Seabands," a wristband which places pressure on strategic pressure points- (or some such wizardry which I don't quite understand).
They seem to work well for pregnant ladies with nausea, so it may be worth a try.


Do you remember how much they cost? The £80 quoted above for the aviation version seems a little steep to me....

[gingernut]

I think they were about eight quid, I've just seen them on the web for ten dollars.

[tecoma]

Certainly works for me, though being well known for wimpish behaviour I find the capsules from Holland & Barrett more pleasant to take! I've never tried to grate root ginger into water, but I should imagine its enough to take your mind off the nausea ;)

I always now feed the kids ginger before I take them flying. Seems to work, and although we've had nausea, there has been no actual upchucking for a while.

I've been flying for 14 years or so, and the funny thing is I never used to be bothered by nausea. Last couple of years however have been different. Evidence of my ageing ears? I don't know.

[QDMQDMQDM]

Promethazine (you can buy it over the counter). NASA uses it as first line in the Space Shuttle. I get seasick on a child's swing, but I spent three weeks at high latitudes of the Southern Ocean dosed up to my eyeballs on promethazine and didn't miss a meal.

No good for pilots, cos it makes you sleepy, but for pax it is fine, as long as they don't mind being a bit drowsy.

[cambioso]

Thanks for the replies chaps...
Guess it's off to Boots for their wristbands then......£80 seems a bit steep for the "grown-up" version.
Thanks again,

Camb.

[A and C]

I have no trouble with air sickness but sitting under a 300 year old oak tree cured my sea sickness.

[hollywood285]

Interesting!! I have only ever been sick (outside the aircraft) once, I was sat in the back of a baron on a VERY rough flight, but when I have been flying myself and been in similar conditions I have not even been queasy!! As has been said before I thing distraction is the best cure for motion sickness.