There are few better ways to explore the world than on a cruise holiday, but travelling the high seas can come with the unfortunate drawback of motion sickness for some.
While the sheer size of cruise ships means you’re unlikely to experience much rocking and rolling to make you feel ill onboard, it’s not entirely out of the question, particuarly if you run into choppy waters. Modern engineering allows cruiseliners to safely navigate around bad weather, and ships now also use stabilisers to reduce side-to-side motions, but that’s not to say sea sickness can’t still strike, so it’s best to be prepared just in case you’re struck with a bout of nausea.
Sea sickness – or motion sickness – is caused by repeated movements when travelling, such as bobbing up and down over the ocean waves, which prompts the inner ear to send different signals to your brain from those your eyes are seeing, and these confusing messages can cause you to feel unwell.
It’s possible to combat motion sickness with over-the-counter remedies like tablets or patches, and some people may find acupressure bands helpful, but if you’re looking for a natural remedy, there is one type of food that health experts recommend to ease that queasy feeling.
Ginger is widely recommended for nausea and vomiting relief, with research finding it can increase the responsiveness of the digestive system and encourage stomach emptying.
The National Library of Medicine explains: “Ginger and its metabolites appear to accumulate in the gastrointestinal tract and exert their effects by relieving pain through anti-inflammatory effects, soothing the digestive system through carminative effects, and alleviating nausea.”
The NHS recommends eating ginger biscuits or drinking ginger tea to help alleviate nausea, or ginger can also be taken as a tablet or a sucking sweet.
Dr Benjamin Shore, chief medical consultant at Royal Caribbean, also champions the food and said ginger ale or chewing fresh ginger can do wonders for helping relieve sickness.
He said: “Anecdotally, ginger seems to be helpful, and some people find various aromas, like anise, basil, chamomile and peppermint, or eating dry crackers, even after the onset of seasickness can help.”
Of course if tucking into a few ginger biscuits on board doesn’t do the trick, passengers are advised to go for a short walk to the centre of the ship, as this area is the most balanced area on board and, therefore, the least likely spot to produce sea-sickness symptoms.