Believe it or not, you can train your brain to tone this reaction down. People who get motion sickness often use a technique called habituation. By slowly exposing themselves to the trigger, their brain learns it’s not a death threat.
But for the rest of us, it’s a primal echo from our caveman ancestors. If a caveman ate a bad mammoth steak, his mouth would water to protect his teeth, and then he’d puke to survive. Evolution is beautiful and disgusting in equal measure.
One study even found that the average person produces around 1.5 liters of saliva per day. When you’re about to vomit, that production can double in minutes. You could, technically, fill a small water bottle with your pre-puke spit. Don’t. Please don’t.
