When motion sickness goes along for the ride

If diseases were classified by how they affect the people who don't get them, motion sickness would fall into the same category as hemorrhoids and halitosis: They all strike the unafflicted right in the funny bone. A joke about an air traveler's queasy stomach and "little brown bag" brings an unsympathetic chortle just as surely as a wisecrack about "old buzzard breath" or some poor soul's inflated hemorrhoid cushion.

There's also an air of superiority on the part of many nonsufferers, who feel they are somehow of stouter stock than those who succumb to such embarrassing annoyances. This seems to be especially true for motion sickness. Mark Twain once observed that, "If there is one thing that will make a man peculiarly and insufferably self-conceited, it is to have his stomach behave itself, the first day at sea, when nearly all his comrades are seasick."

Not much can cheer up someone on a trip whose stomach is reacting so miserably that he wishes he had left home without it. But if misery does love company, the distraught traveler can take some solace in knowing that no one, no matter how strong their intestinal fortitude, is immune to motion sickness. Surveys have found that about nine out of 10 people have experienced the disorder. And experts agree that, given a strong enough stimulus, everyone with a normal sense of balance will succumb. In fact, Dr. K.E. Money, a Canadian authority on motion sickness, has said that the disorder is so pervasive that it "might be described better as 'the normal vomiting response to motion.'"

Some people are susceptible only to certain types of motion or only under special circumstances. Individuals may feel no queasiness at all riding in a car or plane, but fall victim to seasickness because of the ship's combined motions of pitching from front to back and rolling from side to side. In fact, sea travel is considered the strongest natural stimulus for motion sickness. Few seafarers green about the gills, leaning over the ship's rail waiting for the worst, would be surprised to learn that the words "nausea" and "nautical" both have the same Greek root (naus, meaning "ship").

Even fish can get seasick. In one study, codfish lost their lunch when they were placed in a tank on a boat and transported over rough water an hour after being fed. And many a family vacationing by car can confirm the finding that dogs are as susceptible to motion sickness as humans.

Among humans, infants rarely get motion-sick. The greatest susceptibility is between the ages of 2 and 12. After that, it gradually decreases through adulthood and is reportedly uncommon after age 50.

Some researchers have claimed that women are more prone than men to motion sickness. But others doubt that conclusion, noting that, where carsickness is concerned, men traditionally have done most of the driving, leaving women in the passenger seat, where the susceptibility to sickness is greater.

Fear, anxiety and other psychological factors can contribute to the onset of motion sickness. (This is why the drowsiness brought on by some motion sickness medications is not always considered a bad side effect. Unless, of course, the patient is the pilot.) Some people with a history of motion sickness can get sick just thinking about a coming trip or even at the mere sight of the ship or other conveyance they'll be taking.

You don't have to travel far to become motion-sick. Sometimes a trip to the local movie theater is enough, particularly if the picture has a "chase scene" filmed from the view point of the chase car. And carvinal rides can leave many fun-seekers with a taste in their mouths far less pleasant than that of the cotton candy or popcorn down on the midway. Even those who travel by such four-legged conveyances as elephants and camels have become motion-sick, including Lawrence of Arabia. Lawrence may have done better on an Arabian stallion, since horses are not known to bring out the wurst in their riders.

American and Soviet space travelers have fallen victim to a special zero-gravity form of motion sickness that the National Aeronautics and Space Administration has dubbed "Space Adaptation Syndrome." The syndrome was first reported among astronauts on the Apollo 8 moon voyage in 1968. Apparently the crews of earlier space flights were not afflicted because they were generally restricted to their seats in the small capsules. But in the roomier digs of Skylab and the space shuttles, where the astronauts can float weightlessly about the cabin as their spacecraft hurtles around the earth, about half of the crew members have reported nausea or vomiting. NASA is sponsoring much research to learn more about the causes and possible cures for Space Adaptation Syndrome, as it not only can bring misery to the affected crew but can also interfere with their performance. As ex-astronaut Russell Schweickart put it, getting space-sick simply "wasn't the right stuff."

While the symptoms of Space Adaptation Syndrome differ slightly from those experienced by earthbound travelers, motion sickness is by and large the same whether it comes on in a Chevy, a skiff or a 747. Generally, the first symptom is unusual paleness of the skin. This may be followed by yawning, restlessness and a cold sweat. As the symptoms progress, malaise and drowsiness may set in, sometimes accompanied by a slightly upset stomach, or "gastric awareness" as the experts euphemistically call it. By this time the victim usually realizes what's up and what's likely to follow: excessive salivation, nausea and vomiting. The symptoms may progress rapidly in highly susceptible individuals. Those more resistant may experience a waxing and waning of symptoms and perhaps never actually vomit. But vomiting sometimes brings relief, if only for a time.