Susceptibility to motion sickness

[chukhung]

In regard to the staff report Why do people get car sick?: Is there any objective measurement of susceptibility to motion sickness?

I think we’ve all encountered people who get car sick relatively easily, and while traveling, I’ve noticed that in some parts of the world the native population seems to be particularly prone to this malady (it makes Nepali bus rides a joy–I’m telling ya…).

But how would you test to see if a particular person or group is more or less likely to become car sick than others? Does NASA check for this with their astronaut candidates? Or does NASA just try to train/desensitize their astronauts, so they have fewer problems?

[Duck_Duck_Goose]

Apparently NASA regards space motion sickness as just “one of those things”.

http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2001/ast07aug_1.htm

When people go up into space, many will immediately get space sickness," says Dr. Victor Schneider, research medical officer for NASA’s Biomedical Research and Countermeasures Program. While a few astronauts are apparently immune, most can experience symptoms ranging from mild headaches to vertigo and nausea. In extreme cases prolonged vomiting can make an astronaut dehydrated and malnourished.

< snip >

Indeed, space sickness is capricious – when it will happen and who will get it can be hard to predict. Some astronauts who show an exceptional tolerance to motion sickness when flying jets suffer the worst symptoms upon arriving in space. “This occurs on Earth as well,” adds Schneider. “For example, gymnasts who perform acrobatics and do not get motion sick may get sick on a roller coaster or in the back seat of a moving car.”

Figuring out how to prevent space sickness – and how to treat it when it happens – is a high priority for NASA…