Can sound stimulation combat motion sickness?

A one-minute 100-hertz tone reduces dizziness and nausea caused by seasickness, driving, or flying

Sound as medicine:

A new type of sound stimulation could help combat motion sickness and seasickness. When our ears are exposed to a loud, pure tone of 100 hertz, it helps our vestibular system, as experiments with test subjects have shown. The approximately one-minute tone triggers vibrations in the inner ear and counteracts the disruptive effects of the rocking ship, the flight, or the car ride. As a result, nausea and dizziness subside.

A pure acoustic method could help alleviate travel sickness. photo:pixabay

Whether driving, at sea, or in an airplane:

Millions of people suffer from seasickness or motion sickness. This makes them nauseous and disrupts their circulation. These symptoms arise when the information from our vestibular system in the inner ear does not match the movements perceived by the eyes. Special medications can alleviate the symptoms of motion sickness, but they also cause drowsiness.

100-Hertz Tone Stimulates Ear Stones

Yishuo Gu of Nagoya University and his colleagues may have discovered a surprisingly simple remedy for seasickness and motion sickness. According to their findings, a brief exposure to a specific tone could be enough to prevent seasickness. The starting point for this was previous studies showing that vibrations at a frequency of 100 Hertz can stimulate the otoliths – the tiny calcium granules that help our vestibular system sense position.

"Vibrations at this pitch stimulate the otolith organs in the inner ear, which sense linear acceleration and gravity," explains senior author Masashi Kato of Nagoya University. In studies with mice and humans, exposure to a 100-Hertz tone has already shown positive effects on balance and posture control. However, whether the tone also helps combat motion sickness has been unclear until now.

Endurance Test with Driving Simulator and Swing

Gu and his team have now tested this. To do this, they subjected 82 test subjects with varying degrees of motion sickness to various vibration tests: They were exposed to the vibrations and oscillations on a swing, in a driving simulator, and in a real car. During this time, the participants were asked to read a text – typically, reading this type of text while moving disrupts the vestibular system and triggers motion sickness.

During part of these experiments, the test subjects were exposed to a 100-hertz tone at around 80 decibels for one minute via loudspeakers. "The participants had no idea what significance this one- or two-sided sound exposure had," the researchers explain. The team assessed their reactions to the vibrations and sound by measuring heart rate, conducting balance tests immediately after the "ride," and asking about subjective symptoms.

Significant Relief of Symptoms

The results showed that the test subjects who heard the 100-hertz tone at the beginning of the tests suffered significantly less from balance disturbances and nausea. "This suggests that the sound alleviates both subjective and objective symptoms of motion sickness," the team explains. This was confirmed by the heartbeat pattern in the ECG: "The measured data indicate improved activation of the sympathetic nerve, which is often deregulated in motion sickness," explains Kato.

According to the research team, their tests demonstrate that a simple sound lasting approximately one minute can help alleviate the causes and symptoms of seasickness and travel sickness. "The short-term stimulation by this sound, dubbed 'Sound Spice,' improves symptoms such as nausea and dizziness," says co-author Takumi Kagawa of Nagoya University.

Loud, but not harmful

Although the sound required for this is relatively loud at around 80 decibels, no hearing damage is to be expected, the team emphasizes. "The volume and duration of the sound exposure are below the limits prescribed for workplaces," explains Kagawa. According to the World Health Organization, workplace noise exposure should not exceed 480 minutes at 85 decibels. "The stimulation is therefore safe if used correctly," the researcher says.

The team is already working on further developing their anti-motion sickness technique so that it can be used easily and anywhere.

(Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine, 2025; doi: 10.1265/ehpm.24-00247)

Source: Nagoya University