How to jettison jet lag
SEVERAL people have asked me for advice about flying and jet lag recently. Indeed, jet lag syndrome can be a real problem with long-haul air travel.
Its symptoms include sleep disturbance, fatigue, muzzy headedness and day time irritability. It is quite a ragbag of symptoms, some of which are down to simple travel fatigue and some to actual jet lag.
Travel fatigue is a cluster of symptoms that arise simply from the tiring effect of travelling. Long flights are often uncomfortable, monotonous and dehydrating. This dehydration occurs partly because of the dry cabin air and the fact that people usually do not take enough water into their system. If one drinks alcohol, tea or coffee, then you will get a diuretic effect which will tend to dehydrate you. It is best to take your fluids as water or fruit juices and resist the alcohol temptation. It is also worth knowing that cabin air pressure is not set at the equivalent of ground pressure, but at the altitude of a small mountain. This increases the effect of alcohol.
Studies have been done to distinguish between travel fatigue and jet lag by comparing long-haul flights in which one travels north or south within the same time zone, with flights which cross several time zones. In the former you get travel fatigue only. In the latter you get jet lag. You recover from travel fatigue swiftly, within 24 hours, but jet lag can take several days, depending upon how many time zones are crossed.
Jet lag is down to desynchronisation (or imbalance) between the various body rhythms and the environmental rhythms. The most obvious rhythm is the sleep and activity rhythm, which results in alteration in physical and mental functioning.
Effectively, the body clock controls the secretion of a chemical called melatonin from the pineal gland in the brain. Light turns the mechanism off. Unfortunately, once it has been switched off for a while it can take days to regain balance – hence jet lag.
To avoid jet lag, adopt the measures I talked about above to counter travel fatigue, but in addition, take a note of the light. Essentially, if you are travelling westwards, aim to stay awake while it is daylight, and upon arriving at the destination try to sleep when darkness falls. If you are travelling eastwards, try to stay awake but avoid bright morning light and try to go out in the afternoon. If you do this you will adjust the body clock to turn on the melatonin secretion according to your new time zone.
It is worth adjusting your watch to the destination time as soon as you board the plane. Definitely avoid sleeping tablets and preferably avoid anti-histamines as well. Finally, once at your destination try to get into the right time psychology, don't recalculate what time it is back home.
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Wednesday 23 May 2012
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