It could save your car, boat or plane trips this summer (for young and old).
Going on vacation usually brings relaxation and good humor, but for many it also rhymes with “motion sickness.” Also called “kinetosis,” this phenomenon occurs when there is a discrepancy between what the eye perceives and what the inner ear perceives. This is why it is not recommended to read in the car. When reading, the eyes are fixed on fixed letters, while the inner ear perceives the movements. “This difference causes feelings of discomfort and nausea.” explains Dr. François-Xavier Moronval, emergency physician. Sensations that can quickly become disabling when you have to move around a lot. Among the solutions to try (if you don’t know it yet), that of the adhesive bandage.
This technique is a grandmother’s trick that is passed down by word of mouth and which consists of applying a small piece of adhesive tape to the belly button of the person prone to motion sickness. Is that all? Yes. This piece of adhesive tape is supposed to prevent the symptoms of motion sickness from appearing. Is there a medical basis for this? “No way” answers our expert. Scientifically speaking, there is no explanation for a potential beneficial effect of the sticking plaster trick on motion sickness. It would seem that the relief caused is the result of the famous placebo effect. The latter confers power to an object or a product without there really being any, by playing on the unconscious to imagine an influence. “For example, if you give someone a piece of sugar and explain that it is a medicine that will make them happier, the unconscious can believe it and will potentiate the promised effects.” illustrates the emergency physician.
The placebo effect really exists and can work on some people. The more details and indications there are, the more the unconscious can be deceived. “Here, the adhesive bandage must be placed on a specific place: the navel. If the instructions added that the adhesive bandage must be blue and 3 cm long, the placebo effect could be even more accentuated.” However, it does not guarantee 100% effective results. Another tip would work better.
“There is one real piece of advice I can give” continues the health professional. “The goal is to try to synchronize the eyes and the inner ear.” For this reason, the emergency doctor advises that when you are in a car, boat or any other means of transport, you should look into the distance and look at the horizon.
Thanks to Dr. François-Xavier Moronval, emergency physician, author of “Profession urgentiste” published by Stock and presenter of the YouTube channel “DOC FX.”