Dramamine®

What is Dramamine?

Dramamine is an over-the-counter drug that’s commonly used to prevent or relieve motion sickness symptoms like nausea (feeling sick), being sick or feeling dizzy when travelling by car, train, boat or plane. While these days it’s a popular drug for nausea, it was first developed as a treatment for urticaria (hives). Its usefulness for motion sickness was only discovered by chance.

There’s also evidence that it can help with vertigo^[1]—when you feel like you or your surroundings are spinning around—and other mild causes of nausea.^[2]

Dramamine is the branded version of Dimenhydrinate tablets. Both medications contain the same active ingredient, dimenhydrinate. It’s a combination of two active ingredients:

1. Dimenhydramine, which helps you feel less nauseous but can also cause drowsiness.
2. 8-chlorotheophylline, which has stimulant effects to counteract the drowsiness caused by dimenhydramine.

How does Dramamine work?

Dramamine contains dimenhydrinate, which has a complex and not yet fully understood mode of action. What’s known is that it blocks a group of receptors called H1 receptors, which blocks the action of histamine in the brain, preventing nausea and vomiting.^[3]

What doses of Dramamine are there?

There are a few different types of Dramamine out there. Firstly, there’s Dramamine chewable tablets and Dramamine ORIGINAL FORMULA, which both contain 50mg of dimenhydrinate. There’s also Dramamine LESS DROWSY chewable tablets and Dramamine-N tablets which contain a different active ingredient called meclizine hydrochloride—another drug that treats and prevents nausea—at 25mg.

How to take Dramamine

If you’re using Dramamine Original, you should simply swallow the tablets with water. And if you take the chewable tablets, these should be chewed before swallowing.

The dosage for Dramamine is the same regardless of the type of tablet you use, but how often you take it depends on what you’re taking it for. To prevent motion sickness, take one tablet half an hour to one hour before you start travelling. To treat motion sickness, take one or two tablets every four to six hours or as prescribed by your doctor. But don’t take more than eight tablets in a day.

How long does Dramamine take to work?

Dramamine takes somewhere between half an hour to an hour to start working. This is why it’s recommended that you take a tablet at least half an hour before travelling.

How long do the effects of Dramamine last?

Dramamine’s effects usually last for four to eight hours.

What should I do if I make a mistake when taking Dramamine?

If you take Dramamine to prevent nausea, simply take one tablet half an hour to an hour before you think you might get sick.

If you take Dramamine to treat nausea and you think you’ve taken more than the recommended amount, contact your doctor or go to your nearest emergency department.

If you miss a dose, just take it when you remember. Simply skip it if it’s close to your next dose and continue with your regular schedule.