Motion Sickness Drugs and Alcohol Interactions
What is Motion Sickness? | Why do I get it? | Preventive Medicines | Tips to Help Prevent Motion Sickness
You should avoid drinking alcohol when you are using medicines for motion sickness. This can make you drowsy or dizzy and may worsen the chances for nausea or vomiting.
Motion sickness medicines (also called antiemetics) can be helpful for people who suffer from this disorder, but these drugs tend to work in the brain. When you combine them with alcohol this drug interaction can cause extreme drowsiness, dizziness or confusion. It can make driving more dangerous and you may be at greater risk of a fall or other injury. This can be especially hazardous in older people.
What is motion sickness?
If you've ever had motion sickness, sometimes called travel sickness, you probably remember it as a very unpleasant event.
- Motion sickness commonly occurs in boats (“sea sickness”), cars, planes, trains, and on amusement park rides.
- Reading in a car can lead to motion sickness for many people.
- Gaming and virtual reality experiences can also cause motion sickness and dizziness.
Fortunately, motion sickness is usually a temporary event and there are several anti-nausea medications to help prevent a future episode, when needed.
Why do you get motion sickness?
Motion sickness occurs when the motion you see is different from the motion you feel. Input from your eyes, your body, and your inner ears send motion signals to your brain. When these signals are mixed, motion sickness occurs.
Symptoms of motion sickness include nausea, vomiting, sweating, lightheadedness and a fast heart rate. Children and pregnant women are especially vulnerable to motion sickness.
Pregnant women, or women who think they may be pregnant, should consult with a doctor before taking any drug, including anti-nausea medication for treatment or prevention of nausea. Parents or caregivers should follow directions for children on the package labeling for over-the-counter (OTC) products.
How can I prevent motion sickness?
Several common medications (see Table 1) are classified as antiemetics (to help prevent motion sickness), for example:
- meclizine (Antivert, Bonine, Dramamine Less Drowsy)
- dimenhydrinate (Dramamine)
- diphenhydramine (Benadryl)
- scopolamine (Transderm Scop)
Meclizine tends to cause less drowsiness than dimenhydrinate or diphenhydramine, and all three agents are available OTC without a prescription. These medications should be taken 30 minutes to one hour before travel.
Scopolamine (Transderm Scop) is a prescription patch than can be worn behind the ear and replaced after 3 days. It's available in a generic version which may be more affordable.
Related: If you would like to review some cost saving coupons on medications, you can check the Drugs.com Price Guide and Discount Card online tool.
Promethazine is a phenothiazine antiemetic and H1 receptor blocking antihistamine that provides clinically useful antiemetic effects, but can also cause marked drowsiness. It is available as an oral tablet, oral solution, or rectal suppository. There is also an injectable form, but its use is not recommended due to the risk of severe tissue damage. You more commonly encounter promethazine administration in a hospital setting.
Many motion sickness medications, like dramamine, are "anticholinergic". This means the way they work (by blocking the action of the acetylcholine neurotransmitter) can lead to side effects like dry mouth, constipation, urinary retention, blurred vision, increased heart rate, and decreased sweating, which can be especially problematic in older patients.
Learn more: Anticholinergic Drugs to Avoid in the Elderly
Table 1: Common Motion Sickness Medications
| Generic Name | Common Brand Names |
|---|---|
| dimenhydrinate | Dramamine |
| diphenhydramine | Benadryl |
| promethazine | Phenergan |
| meclizine | Antivert, Bonine, Dramamine Less Drowsy |
| scopolamine | Transderm Scop |
*Note: This is not a complete list; always check with your pharmacist for possible drug-alcohol interactions.
Tips to Help to Prevent Motion Sickness
When possible, it's best to avoid any activity that causes you motion sickness. When that's not possible medicine may help, and here are some tips to help ease or prevent the feeling of nausea or dizziness:
- Avoid alcoholic beverages and caffeine consumption (for example, coffee, tea, energy drinks). Stay hydrated with water, or sip on some ginger ale.
- Facing forwards (not backwards) when in motion can often help prevent motion sickness.
- You may be able to lessen symptoms if you are the car driver (rather than a passenger). Being in the front seat of a car, staying in the middle section of a plane or boat, and sitting by a window on a plane can help.
- If you are in a boat, car, or train try to look at the horizon. If you feel sick, sit slightly reclined and look at the horizon.
- Increase fresh air around your face, but avoid fumes or exhaust, smoke, or odors.
- Do not play video games or read (especially from a mobile device) while in motion.
- Wrist bands for motion sickness, aromatherapy (mint or lavender), ginger candy or chamomile tea may also be effective natural remedies for nausea, but research does not always back up these options. However, they are unlikely to be dangerous if used.
- Do not eat a large meal before you travel, but it's probably best not to travel on an empty stomach either. Avoid sugar-filled snacks or meals.
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Learn more
Treatment options
Symptoms and treatments
Medicine.com guides (external)
Sources
- Breslow RA, Dong C, White A. Prevalence of Alcohol-Interactive Prescription Medication Use Among Current Drinkers: United States, 1999 to 2010. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2015; 39:371-79. Accessed September 25, 2017 doi: 10.1111/acer.12633
- Weathermon R, Crabb DW. Alcohol and medication interactions. Alcohol Res. Health. 1999;23(1):40-54. PMID: 10890797.
- Travel Sickness (meclizine) Drug Interactions. Drugs.com at https://www.drugs.com/drug-interactions/meclizine,travel-sickness.html
- Ekor M. The growing use of herbal medicines: issues relating to adverse reactions and challenges in monitoring safety. Front Pharmacol. 2013; 4: 177 at doi: 10.3389/fphar.2013.00177.
- Alcohol Facts & Statistics. National Institute on Alcohol and Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). National Institutes of Health (NIH). https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/brochures-and-fact-sheets/alcohol-facts-and-statistics
- Davies M. The role of GABA-A receptors in mediating the effects of alcohol in the central nervous system. J Psychiatry Neurosci. 2003 Jul; 28(4): 263–274. PMID: 12921221.
- Ginger. Drugs.com. https://www.drugs.com/mtm/ginger.html
Further information
Always consult your healthcare provider to ensure the information displayed on this page applies to your personal circumstances.