Both of my kids were unfortunately blessed with car sickness. I never had any problems with motion sickness while growing up, so it never dawned on me that my kids would. I feel bad that Jon suffered before I figured it out. I specifically remember when I finally figured it out. We were driving to the other side of town & Jon was sitting in the back of my van (3rd row). About 20 minutes into the trip, he complained about not feeling well. I thought he was trying to avoid going to school later in the day, so I didn’t pay much attention. He got progressively worse until we got to our destination. Once there, Jon improved quickly. We got back in the car & things went downhill quickly. It was then that I knew. Ever since then, I have medicated him on any trip more than 60 minutes long.
There are many different motion sickness medications or methods out there. I haven’t tried the wristbands I read about; I usually use one of the OTC medications on the market. I have verified that Benadryl is gluten-free and this was our medication of choice for car sickness until last fall. In order for any medication for car sickness to be effective, you have to give the medication before the trip begins. Another medication, that I think works a little better than Benadryl is Bonine. I found this medication accidentally one day. Hannah was feeling sick & I couldn’t give her Benadryl (an antihistamine) because she already takes Zyrtec (an antihistamine) daily. I spoke with the pharmacist and he recommended Bonine (chewable) – which can be taken along with Zyrtec safely. It worked like a charm!
I emailed Bonine to ask about the gluten-free status and got this response:
Yes, the product contains no gluten.
Best Regards,
Insight Pharmaceuticals
Consumer Affairs Dept.
1-800-344-7239
Some other tips for helping to prevent car sickness include:
- Not sitting in the back of the car (back of vans or SUVs
- Fresh air
- Being able to see the horizon & focusing on it
- Stopping frequently
- Eating a light snack or meal on empty stomach tends to make car sickness worse
I always keep some towels & larger Ziploc bags in the car, just in case. In the event that all the methods above fail, you want to make sure to have some tools available to handle any mess that may occur.
For more information on gluten-free medications, please click here.
Kim,
I have suffered from motion sickness for a number of years and I wear Sea Bands. You can buy them at any drug store and they come in a number of colors and their own carrying case that easily fits in my purse. I have multiple pairs and have not gotten motion sick since I started using them.
thanks a lot
Please let me k ow if Hyland’s motion sickness is gluten free.