Electric shocks against travel sickness
Luise Heine has been an editor at since 2012. The qualified biologist studied in Regensburg and Brisbane (Australia) and gained experience as a journalist in television, in the Ratgeber-Verlag and in a print magazine. In addition to her work at , she also writes for children, for example for the Stuttgarter Kinderzeitung, and has her own breakfast blog, “Kuchen zum Frühstück”.
More posts by Luise Heine All content is checked by medical journalists.Up and down, back and forth - three out of ten people find travel annoying. Probably to blame are contradicting sensory impressions that reach the brain. The confused thinking organ can, however, be appeased - with electric current. Researchers hope to be ready for the market in a few years.
Full-blown travel sickness can turn the start of your holiday into a trip to hell. Depending on the means of transport - car, bus, ship or plane - many people feel more or less sick. Some, however, suffer particularly: they vomit, they feel dizzy and they feel miserable as a dog. Those plagued in this way can now draw hope, because Dr. Qadeer Arshad from Imperial College London and his team have found a new method that helps in acute cases.
Rocking chair makes seasick
The scientists tested their technique on 20 test subjects who voluntarily allowed themselves to be made seasick. To do this, they took a seat buckled on a chair, which then simulated the movements of a ten-minute, particularly restless journey - among other things by turning around itself at different angles.
Some of the test subjects wore a cap in which an electrode supplied the left hemisphere of the brain with a weak electric current. The result was clear: "Without an electrode, the test subjects developed travel sickness more quickly and also took longer to recover from it," says Arshad. The scientists suspect that the current suppresses the messages sent by the sense of balance to the brain.
In contrast to the usual remedies for seasickness, the electrical treatment did not show any side effects. For example, those affected normally take tablets that contain antihistamines - active ingredients that neutralize the effects of the body's own hormone histamine. Although these soothe the stomach, they also make you sleepy. And: "Many drugs are not suitable for people who work on a ship, for example," explains Professor Michael Gresty, co-author of the study. “The effect that the electricity treatment achieved was roughly comparable to that of drugs,” says Gresty.
Market readiness in five to ten years
The researchers envision the future for the seasick as follows: "In the future, the" travel sick "will be given a light power shower on a ferry for ten to fifteen minutes from the permanently installed equipment," says Arshad. And the subsequent trip would be a lot more pleasant for those treated in this way. “Perhaps the technology could even be integrated into the cell phone and the low power could be transported to the site of action using headphones, for example.” The scientists hope that their method will also be available to the general public in the near future - within five to ten years.
Inner ear in "sleeping position"
Until then, those affected can use a few tricks to appease their sense of balance. A simple antidote, at least on a ship: Show the eye where the stimuli come from. In the car, ideally sitting next to the driver. In the bus, the space in front of the front axle is recommended - it sways less. On the other hand, it is better not to look out of the window on the plane and rather book a seat in the aisle. In between, get up again and again and stretch your legs a little. Or you fold the seat back, lie back and close your eyes - then the inner ear switches to the "sleeping position".
Source: Qadeer Arshad et al. Electro-cortical Therapy for Motion Sickness. Neurology, September 2015
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