This year many thousands of people will be jetting off to the four corners of the globe to lie on a tropical beach and soak up the sun, to backpack through some of the most beautiful of the world's wilderness areas, to explore some of the architectural wonders of our planet or to merely explore new cultures and countries. And, regrettably, many thousands of us are also going to find that the first one or two days of our vacation will be taken up with trying to get over the effects of jet lag.
But is jet lag an inescapable part of long-haul travel?
The answer to this question is very much dependent upon where you are flying from and to. For instance, if you begin your journey in Brisbane, Australia and fly to Sapporo, Japan then you will not experience any jet lag at all because, even though you are traveling thousands of miles, your flight essentially takes you due north so that both your departure point and destination lie in the same time zone. If however you travel from Brisbane to London, England then you will fly east to west over ten time zones and you will undoubtedly suffer from jet lag.
Jet lag is really nothing more than a consequence of your body clock being out of step with local time and, while your body clock will adjust itself to come into line with local time, this adjustment takes a bit of time.
If you travel across just two or three time zones then the time difference experienced will be small and you probably will not notice it greatly and your body clock will adjust quite quickly. If however you travel across more than four time zones then the difference will be noticeable and your body clock will need more and more time to adjust as you fly across more and more time zones.
In our previous example of traveling from Australia to London your internal clock will need a few days to adjust itself fully and, while it is doing so, you are very likely to find that you suffer from insomnia, finding it hard to fall asleep at night and to wake up in the morning, feeling tired during the day, possibly experiencing difficulty in eating with nausea, stomach upset, a feeling of dehydration, a headache, and much more.
So just what can be done to tackle the problem of jet lag?
There are many 'traditional' jet lag remedies including diets, formulas, sleeping pills, over-the-counter medicines, melatonin and others and each of these has both its supporters and critics, but do these so-called cures actually work?
In simple terms the answer to this question is no. These 'traditional' remedies do not work and, in many cases, will actually make your jet lag worse.
Coping with jet lag is not a question of turning to formulas and pills, but requires you to devise a plan focusing on your particular travel plans and lifestyle which allows you to assist your body's natural process of adjusting its own internal clock. This involves taking a number of steps in preparation for your departure, as well as during your flight and at your destination. Sometimes these steps will be sufficient for you to avoid jet lag altogether while, in others, they will undoubtedly reduce the effects of jet lag considerably.
But is jet lag an inescapable part of long-haul travel?
The answer to this question is very much dependent upon where you are flying from and to. For instance, if you begin your journey in Brisbane, Australia and fly to Sapporo, Japan then you will not experience any jet lag at all because, even though you are traveling thousands of miles, your flight essentially takes you due north so that both your departure point and destination lie in the same time zone. If however you travel from Brisbane to London, England then you will fly east to west over ten time zones and you will undoubtedly suffer from jet lag.
Jet lag is really nothing more than a consequence of your body clock being out of step with local time and, while your body clock will adjust itself to come into line with local time, this adjustment takes a bit of time.
If you travel across just two or three time zones then the time difference experienced will be small and you probably will not notice it greatly and your body clock will adjust quite quickly. If however you travel across more than four time zones then the difference will be noticeable and your body clock will need more and more time to adjust as you fly across more and more time zones.
In our previous example of traveling from Australia to London your internal clock will need a few days to adjust itself fully and, while it is doing so, you are very likely to find that you suffer from insomnia, finding it hard to fall asleep at night and to wake up in the morning, feeling tired during the day, possibly experiencing difficulty in eating with nausea, stomach upset, a feeling of dehydration, a headache, and much more.
So just what can be done to tackle the problem of jet lag?
There are many 'traditional' jet lag remedies including diets, formulas, sleeping pills, over-the-counter medicines, melatonin and others and each of these has both its supporters and critics, but do these so-called cures actually work?
In simple terms the answer to this question is no. These 'traditional' remedies do not work and, in many cases, will actually make your jet lag worse.
Coping with jet lag is not a question of turning to formulas and pills, but requires you to devise a plan focusing on your particular travel plans and lifestyle which allows you to assist your body's natural process of adjusting its own internal clock. This involves taking a number of steps in preparation for your departure, as well as during your flight and at your destination. Sometimes these steps will be sufficient for you to avoid jet lag altogether while, in others, they will undoubtedly reduce the effects of jet lag considerably.
About the Author:
Help-Me-To-Sleep.com provides comprehensive advice on jet lag and also offers details of a specific jet lag treatment plan to follow before your departure, in flight and at your destination.
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