Sea Sickness - Cure?

[Wings33]

Originally Posted by paulvalles

We were two days out from Cape May enroute to Portugal when we received a Mayday from another sailboat heading to NY from the Bahamas. The skipper had a crew member who was unconscious from dehydration caused be seasickness. We relayed the Mayday to a container ship that passed us earlier that morning. They turned around and picked up the crewmember.
I'm not prone to seasickness, but on this trip I was sick five times. The worst case came when we were past the Azores where the gulf stream hits the European continental shelf as we passed thru a storm crossing our course. I felt like a water bug in a Maytag. I couldn't keep 7up or crackers down. I was beyond the prevention stage. I was seriously sick for several days. My skipper tried an old Cruising Club of America cure called Gatorade. This is not a commercial. I think any sports drink high in potassium to keep the heart going is worth a try. I started drinking just a shot glass full and progressed from there until I recovered after the storm passed.
Fwiw I think my first bout of mal de mar was psychological. Once I realized the boat wasn''t going to sink after the first gale I was okay. The strobe light later in the voyage was another cause. Everything in the boat got damp after awhile and the moisture caused the battery to give off a rotten egg smell. After I got rid of it I was fine until we were off Portugal.

Don't know if you knew this, but Gatorade actually has a very low potassium ratio to sodium. And because of this it makes you more thirsty while thinking you are quenching your thirst. I know crazy! I didn't know this for a long time or about the high sugar content Gatorade and Powerade have in them. There are much better sodium/potassium perfect ratio drinks (with the same balance of the two) that are much better for you like gluekos, ultima, and Vitalyte. Vitalyte is definitely my favorite because it tastes great and easy to stomach and the balance is pretty much equal. But, the other 2 aren't bad. As long as you are staying hydrated that is the key.

[paulvalles]

I agree the key is to stay hydrated. I don't think Vitalyte existed back in 1983 when I did the crossing. There obviously must be something out today that is better than Gatorade. I'd encourage anyone making a long voyage to carry some on their boat. Also I want to mention the motion of the boat got better when we reached deep water. So I'd encourage anyone doing a coastal voyage to think about going further offshore for more comfort.

[hellosailor]

"There obviously must be something out today that is better than Gatorade. "
There is. Way cheaper without the coloring dyes, too.

"UN Standard Rehydration Mix" easy and cheap to mix up yourself, used worldwide to rehydrate kids with cholera, etc.

Works very nicely for sailors and hikers on hot days, although it tastes akin to something you strained through old socks, no matter how you try to flavor it.

Mix:

1 qt water
1/2-1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda (bicabonate) (NOT baking powder)
1/4 tsp potassium chloride (salt substitute)
6-8 tsp sugar or 1-2 tsp honey (use koolaid instead to add flavor)

[or]
1 gallon water
3 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda (bicabonate)
1 tsp potassium chloride (salt substitute)
30 tsp sugar or 6 tsp honey

And of course, since you can pack this as a powder, you can add it to plain water instead of lugging Whatever-Aide.

[Davidrogerson]

You're all wrong
Admiral Viscount Horatio Nelson: "The best cure for seasickness is to place ones self under a tree"

[Stillraining]

Okaaaaaa.....Smarty pants...thats a loss of your good behavior merit badge... return player back to start...

Originally Posted by Davidrogerson

You're all wrong
Admiral Viscount Horatio Nelson: "The best cure for seasickness is to place ones self under a tree"

[Harvester]

Vitamin C

Dr. Jarish (Viena, Austria) studied why carrion eaters being carried on ships didn't get sick and found out that they produce Diaminoxidase (DAO), an enzime that neutralises the Histamine, a substance excessively present in rotten meat. As a collateral effect of DAO, unknown to carrion eaters, is that it prevents motion sicknes.

He also studied that rats seem to be the only animal capable of overcoming motion sicknes on their own. When they start getting sick they have a high level of Histamine, which is rapidly reduced as they overcome sicknes. He related this data to the fact that rats are the only animal capable of producing Vitamin C by themselves and found out that, indeed, Vitamin C dicreases the level of Histamine, which explains how rats can overcome their sickness.

Everyone reacts in a different way to different remedies. But so far, good doses of Vitamin C (either in pills, sucking lemons, eating oranges and tangerines, etc.) before and during sailing, and specially when the first synthoms appear is the only remedy that I have seen consistenly work for everyone I have recommended it to.

[LarryandSusanMacDonald]

Pick the strongest placebo you can find. Many have been mentioned in this thread. Double the dose if necessary. Placebos work. They really do. If they are strong enough.

But seriously, the whole motion sickness thing is a matter of confusing the poor brain - which doesn't usually work that well to begin with. The eyes are seeing things not moving. The inner ear is saying, "Oh, yes, we are."
The brain responds by telling the stomach, "Shut these two up by sending them some bile to take their minds off the issue."

Did you ever notice that the driver never gets carsick? It's the kid in the back seat reading the comic book. It's rare that the helmsman ever gets sick. The cure? Drive or man the helm. In lieu of that, stay on deck and keep at least one eye on the horizon. Force yourself to do that - it's hard, I know, but burying your face in your hands, or going below decks will only exacerbate the situation.

BELIEVE IN YOUR PLACEBO!

[artbyjody]

Originally Posted by LarryandSusanMacDonald

Pick the strongest placebo you can find. Many have been mentioned in this thread. Double the dose if necessary. Placebos work. They really do. If they are strong enough.

You meant libido yes? Having one is the first step to the later...