Ginger Reduces Motion Sickness

Ginger is a Chinese herbal remedy that has been traditionally used to reduce nausea. Recently, Dr. Wei Ming Sun and colleagues, from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, have conducted a study that proves ginger's effectiveness in relieving motion sickness symptoms.

Seven healthy people, aged 18 to 35 years, had motion sickness artificially induced, by being spun in a large drum 30 minutes after eating a meal. Study participants were given either 1,000 milligrams of ginger powder or a placebo (inactive) pill one hour before motion sickness was induced.

Nausea scores after the cessation of the drum rotation, rated on a scale of 1 to 10, were 7.8 for the placebo group versus 1.5 for the ginger group.

Those who took ginger experienced a greater delay in developing nausea than did the controls, 11.4 minutes in contrast to 4.6 minutes, Sun's group noted.

The investigators also measured the electrical activity of the stomach and found that ginger kept the rate of stomach contractions normal during drum rotation. In contrast, the placebo group experienced a 7% increase in stomach contractions.

Anti-motion sickness medications have significant side effects, such as dizziness and dry mouth. Ginger appears to be an effective herbal alternative to the medications.