Evidence supporting the use of: Coca
For the health condition: Motion Sickness

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Synopsis

Source of validity: Traditional
Rating (out of 5): 2

Coca (Erythroxylum coca) leaves have a long history of traditional use among indigenous peoples in the Andes, particularly for combating fatigue, hunger, altitude sickness, and digestive complaints. There is some ethnobotanical documentation suggesting that coca leaves have also been chewed or brewed into teas to help with symptoms akin to motion sickness, such as nausea and dizziness, especially during travel in mountainous regions. However, the primary traditional use is more strongly associated with altitude sickness rather than motion sickness per se. Scientific research directly evaluating coca’s effectiveness for motion sickness is limited and largely anecdotal. The active compounds in coca, chiefly alkaloids like cocaine (in very low concentrations in the leaf), exert stimulant and mild anesthetic effects that may theoretically alleviate some symptoms of motion sickness, such as nausea, but these claims lack robust clinical trials for confirmation. Furthermore, the use of coca leaves is complicated by legal restrictions in many countries. In summary, traditional use exists, but the strength of evidence specifically for motion sickness is weak and mainly extrapolated from related uses like altitude sickness, not from direct scientific validation.

More about Coca
More about Motion Sickness

Other ingredients used for Motion Sickness

ginger
peppermint oil
Coca

Products containing Coca

We currently have no products on Vitabase that contain this ingredient.