Child being car sick every day - should I have health concerns?

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DS (6, autistic) has a car journey of over an hour to & from school and is currently being car sick most days. I'm not looking for advice on how to help this - it's a complex situation and unlikely to improve any time soon. On the plus side, it doesn't bother DS and he cheerfully tells me all about it when he gets home.

I'm more interested to know if anyone has had a similar situation with a child frequently being sick, and thinks there's any specific health concerns I should keep an eye on. I was very sick in my pregnancies and my teeth suffered. I also wonder if it contributed to reflux I got later on. I don't expect a GP to be very helpful but if there's anything specific I should look out for, I can be alert and ask for investigations or treatment if I think it's needed.

DS is a healthy weight & height, he has a restricted diet so he's been referred for blood tests to check his nutrition levels. He drinks plenty of water and doesn't seem dehydrated.

If anyone has any advice, especially based on personal experience, I'd appreciate it!

One of mine with dyslexia is sick on every journey, usually on the last half a mile. I think it’s something to do with his eye gaze.

I don’t really understand this post. You don’t want advice and just want reassurance but of what I don’t know. Every answer or suggestion you have a rebuttal for.

What car is he going in and who is driving him? Some cars and drivers make things worse.
Is it a school taxi with smelly air freshener? Can he sit in the front? An hour is a long journey.

I was very car sick as a child and even as an adult I can’t stomach being a rear seat passenger for more than about 20 minutes.
For me, I needed clear viewing, window open no matter how cold and preferably a front seat.
I agree with PP re strong smells make it much worse.
I’ve worked in schools where kids have long taxi journeys and never wore perfume to work as that could have upset some kids even if they couldn’t verbalise that. They mostly would tbf, quite stridently.
Taxis are often over warm, use air fresheners and won’t allow open windows.
If you DC wears a coat it might be worth trying journeys with the coat placed in the boot or somewhere to feel less stifled. Ask about strong air fresheners, cleaning products or the pupil escort possibly wearing perfume.
I hope this can be resolved for your DC.

I never did. I have to have a tablet every time I am a passenger in any form of transport.

I imagine OP has tried everything already and there is an unusual set of circumstances here that means she is better placed to understand the reasons for the sickness and what might or might not help with it.
She wants advice on the long terms effects of regular vomiting rather than on travel sickness

I would imagine there may be a risk GERD type issues ie the acid burning/irritating his oesophagus. This can happen in babies with reflux and means they are then reluctant to eat as it hurts. However I don’t know if once/twice a day is enough to cause GERD.

I also wonder about social impact - is it a shared journey, do other children have to see/smell/hear him being sick? Does he smell of sick when he gets to school (breath may smell)?

Would there be downsides to taking travel sickness tablets every day? Must admit I don’t know what’s in them.

As a child I was sick on every car journey that lasted more than 10 minutes. I am now in my late forties, and still sometimes vomit, even though I always get the front seat. I am very healthy, and my teeth are in excellent nick - 2 tiny fillings.

Car sickness pills never helped me. They just turned my vomit a fluorescent pink colour.

Try giving him a normal antihistamine in the morning. It should last all day and stops most travel sickness

I’ve had motion sickness since I was a toddler, never grown out of it and I’m in my 40s now. Any kind of vehicle sets it off not just cars, I’m ok as the driver but terrible as a passenger and it doesn’t matter the length of journey, 5 minutes in the passenger seat and I’m wretching.
I had terrible HG when I was pregnant and I suffer with GERD as a result. My teeth are generally ok, 1 filling and I have a fluoride treatment every 6 months at the dentist.
My youngest also gets car sick, ever since he was about 8 months old. He’s 12 now, he finds sucking on a mint imperial helpful and sitting next to the window.

Maybe ask the GP if there is any issue with giving the tablets twice a day. It might be better for him than the vomiting.

DD1 had terrible travel sickness as a child. This followed on from awful colic. Now as an adult she is able to manage it better.

She still gets stomach problems. She has been tested for various things. My suspicion is lupus. She has already tested positive for lupus anticoagulant.

It is possible they are all connected or they could be coincidental.

I know you don't want answers, but thought I'd mention that I had success with the alcohol swap method. As soon as my daughter started to feel sick I'd have her smell an alcohol wipe (you know the wipe you have before an injection). Totally worked. Also no dairy before a journey.

As for health concerns - you've already mentioned them. Enamel erosion and other concerns from stomach acid being brought up.

Swab not swap

I had horrendous car and sea sickness. Used to hate my mum for refusing to fly as I vomited across Europe and the Channel multiple times a year. Car journeys were bad enough but coupled with ferries they became absolutely torture.

I grew mostly out of it after puberty and I'm now in my 40s with no health issues that I'm aware of. I carried water to rinse my mouth out and toothpaste/toothbrush.

I did have awful morning sickness though as did my sil who was also very car sick (the only one of dh's sisters to be car sick/have morning sickness). However no idea if there is a link.

Good point. Tracking problems can be a weak spot. Fixing on the horizon is less disturbing to the visual system than looking at something in the car. I feel sick if I read anything (e.g. map) as a passenger in a moving vehicle, but I'm fine as a driver.

Why are you also not looking into ways to help prevent him being sick ? Surely prevention is also got be something to discuss with Gp etc as well

Thanks for all the helpful comments. A few things to consider and potentially discuss with the doctor. As I've mentioned before, it's not that I'm not trying to prevent the sickness, I just wasn't particularly asking for advice on that.
A good idea to discuss antihistamines more with the doctor - I take daily ones for allergies and they don't stop me getting car sick so I assume they're different types, but maybe there's something. The point of understanding the possible side effects of being sick so often is so that I can weigh that up against the potential risks or side effects of taking medication (e.g. antihistamines or antiemetics) every day. I know only a Dr can answer those questions but like I said they haven't been helpful to date so I was hoping for some personal experiences to give me pointers

Piriton daily is pretty harmless if it doesn't make your kid sleepy. Also cetirizine (which shouldn't be as sleep inducing but theoretically might not be as good at stopped car sickness). Doctors prescribe them for kids continuously for hay-fever and or allergies year round, my kids have them in summer for a few months. No harm in seeing if they help the car sickness (you can get both over the counter I believe). I'm not sure about daily anti emetics I've not known anyone on those regularly for long periods

He won't necessarily grow out of it eventually. I get sick unless I'm in the front seat of the car even on a 15 minute journey. Tbh on a car with extremely good suspension I can still feel rough in the front (though not to the point of actually vomiting). Only being the actual driver stops it completely.
I'm sorry. He'll be able to sit in the front at 12 or 135cm in height, whichever is first. I know that's a long way to go.
It's worth looking at if there are any tablets he can legitimately take daily (speak to gp about it) because car sickness makes you feel really rotten for about 2 hours after you're on "dry land" anyway so he'll be losing ours of concentration/enjoyment time at school too.
I know it's a massive suggestion, but can you move closer to the school?

*hours

My nephews were suck every time they travelled - as short as a 5 minute journey. They would definitely have been sick in an hour's journey every time. They are teenagers now and have mostly grown oit of it.

I know you haven’t asked about sickness and said that it’s not in your control but I think because of the sickness you can request how his taxi should be organized e.g he is picked up the last, dropped off the first, sits on the particular seat, window is open in certain place. Or request from council that he travels on his own.
His sickness might be because of anxiety and anxiety might be the reason to request personal taxi. It’s worth to discuss with GP.
By the way sickness damages throat and make it more vulnerable to infection.

I was like this as a child. Very similar situation. I had two buses to take and took about an hour to school, I was literally sick every day. On the bus, I'm between buses, after the bus. Was awful and I ended up changing schools to one in walking distance. I was then sick approx 7 times a day during my first pregnancy. Am totally fine now.

I never did. Was horrendously travel sick as a child. Still get it now although much better in the front x