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Sea-sickness can destroy your vacation if you haven't planned ahead to deal with it before it becomes a problem. Many people suffer from travel sickness but there are some preventions you can take to avoid the onset of sea sickness.
Sea-sickness is a kind of motion sickness and starts in the inner ear. You get stomach problems, headache and sometimes you get the feeling that you are going to die. Dizziness and nausea are two symptoms which can be prevented easier than you might think.

In the first place it is important to know the reason of sea-sickness. Some people become sea-sick just by the thought of taking a boat or a cruise. In this case you need to take some medicines to stay calm or to relax. What actually happens is that the motion can disturb the balance which in turn produces sickness.

Mostly it is the reaction of the movements of the boat. This gives a strange feeling in your body and a reaction that gives the impression of imbalance. Your brain needs to adapt to the new environment and become familiar with the new situation. Anyone can get this problem and it is best you take some preventions:

BEFORE AND DURING YOUR CRUISE

* Take enough rest before you are going to make your cruise. If you feel relaxed you avoid being nervous which can make you more susceptible to sea-sickness.

* Try to avoid stress and be busy; walk around or read a book

* Drink plenty of water for avoiding dehydration. Water cleans also your body and is a useful substance on every moment.

* Avoid acidic greasy foods before your boat trip and replace this by less acidic foods like melons, apples, grapes, pears etc., bread or grains. Also drinking coffee is a bad idea because this beverage contains caffeine and accelerates dehydration. Caffeinated beverages and also soft drinks are diuretics which means you need to urinate more and causes dehydration. Milk, apple juice, strawberry juice and some other low acidic drinks are a good alternative for orange juice or grapefruit juice. It is better for digestion.

* Avoid alcoholic beverages. Alcoholic has the opposite effect as water and tends more to dehydrate your body.

* Coke and pepsi are two beverages which I can recommend. These beverages contain phosphoric acid and will reduce the chance of sea-sickness and controls vomiting.

* Breathe very deeply and you will feel more relaxed.

* Look forward; many people have problems if they look backwards.

* Be sure your stomach is not empty but avoid eating too otherwise your stomach will be overloaded.

* Sleep on your back which seems to have more advantages for your stomach.

PREVENTIVE MEDICINES

There are also some medicines to treat the problem. Dramamine and Bonine are well known drugs to treat this problem. Scopolamine can also be very useful; sometimes by prescription drugs but also some people wear scopolamine patches behind their ear like a tinny band-aid. A side effect of most medicines is a dry mouth. Did you know that most cruise companies actually keep these drugs in stock, and mild versions suited to children are also available without prescription in the pharmacy?

You can also consider taking natural preventatives. Ginger is one of these and has no side effects. These are available in pill form, tablets or powder and it is recommended to take between 12 and 24 hours before you make your boat trip.

Take preventative measures, relax and enjoy your cruise. With a little thought, it really is easy to feel at home on a cruise and to remedy those horrible feelings of sea-sickness.

Learn more about this author, Erik Van Tongerloo.
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