José Luis Ballvé, doctor: "To avoid getting car sick, this is the best position to maintain rather than sitting."

In Spain, according to a study conducted by the pharmaceutical group Uriach, 45% to 50% of citizens experience motion sickness while traveling by car or bus . This is due to several factors, as explained by José Luis Ballvé, a family doctor at the La Florida Primary Care Center in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat and coordinator of the Primary Care Vertigo Study at the Jordi Gol IDIAP Research Institute.

To put the situation into context, the healthcare professional details the main cause of this problem in people: "The lack of coordination between what the eyes see and what the body feels is what triggers the feeling of discomfort, causing nausea and the urge to vomit."

What is the correct posture to avoid getting car sick?

In reality, there is no correct posture as such that prevents the onset of motion sickness in certain people, but there is a way to prevent it by following a recommendation that, in most cases, is vital and usually works : "When you are in the front seat , whether as a driver or co-driver, you have much clearer visual references than those of a person sitting behind. It is also very important to look ahead."

On the other hand, it is also important to emphasize the aspect of the road layout, since curves represent an "additional inconvenience" for those people who are prone to car sickness: "The more movement and the greater the discrepancy between what you see and what the body is feeling... the more likely it is that motion sickness will set in. This is accentuated on curved sections , where the body perceives the constant change in the direction of movement."

Is there any remedy to prevent car sickness?

As usual, the internet is full of home remedies that, a priori, would help us avoid these types of situations while driving or inside the passenger compartment. However, José Luis Ballvé himself has asserted that their effectiveness "is not proven": "Like all these things, there are many home remedies, but their effectiveness has not been proven . There is no solid study that guarantees their effectiveness. These remedies may work for some people, but we don't have scientific evidence to recommend them generally."