A Double Blind Comparative Trial of Powdered Ginger Root, Hyosine Hydrobromide, and Cinnarizine in the Prophylaxis of Motion Sickness Induced by Cross Coupled Stimulation,

Abstract : A double blind laboratory trial was conducted to study the relative effectiveness of powdered ginger root (1G), hyosine (0.6 mg), cinnarizine (15 mg) and a placebo in increasing the tolerance of subjects to the development of motion sickness symptoms induced by cross coupled stimulation. Tests were carried out at weekly intervals on sixteen subjects two hours after taking each drug. In order to assess the effect of each drug on performance, a range of tests was carried out in the period between ninety minutes and two hours after taking the drug. The study confirmed the effectiveness of hyoscine in delaying the onset of motion sickness symptoms and showed cinnarizine to the similarly effective. However it failed to substantiate a previous report that powdered root ginger is of value in the prophylaxis of motion sickness. Significant differences in the results of performance tests were found only after the administration of hyoscine, which produced a small decrease in subjective alertness and a reduction in the velocity of saccadic eye movements.