Jet Lag

What is jet lag?

Jet lag is a temporary disorder that causes fatigue, insomnia, and other symptoms as a result of air travel across time zones.

What are other symptoms of jet lag?

Besides fatigue and insomnia, a jet lag sufferer may experience anxiety, constipation , diarrhea , confusion, dehydration , headache , irritability, nausea, sweating, coordination problems, and even memory loss. Some individuals may report additional symptoms, such as heartbeat irregularities and an increased susceptibility to illness.

What is a time zone?

A time zone is a geographical region in which every clock keeps the same time. In all, the world has 24 time zones, one for each hour in the day. Each zone runs from north to south in strips of approximately 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometers) wide. (The actual width of each zone varies to accommodate political and geographical boundaries.) As the earth rotates, dawn occurs at a set hour in one time zone, then an hour later in the time zone immediately to the west-- and so on through the 24-hour cycle. Thus, in the U.S., when it is 6 a.m. in the Eastern Time Zone, it is 5 a.m. in the Central Zone, 4 a.m. in the Mountain Zone, and 3 a.m. in the Pacific Zone.

Why does jet lag occur?

Jet lag occurs because the body of a traveler cannot immediately adjust to the time in a different zone. Thus, when a New Yorker arrives in Paris at midnight Paris time, his or her body continues to operate on New York time. It is ready to eat, not sleep . As the body struggles to cope with the new schedule, temporary insomnia, fatigue, irritability, and an impaired ability to concentrate may set in. Meanwhile, the bowels may malfunction in reaction to the changed bathroom schedule, and the brain may become confused and disoriented as it attempts to juggle schedules.

How does the body keep time?

A tiny part of the brain called the hypothalamus acts as a kind of alarm clock to activate various body functions such as hunger, thirst, and sleep. It also regulates body temperature, blood pressure, and the level of hormones and glucose in the bloodstream. To help the body tell the time of day, fibers in the optic nerve of the eye transmit perceptions of light and darkness to a time-keeping center within the hypothalamus. Thus, when the eye of an air traveler perceives dawn or dusk many hours earlier or later than usual, the hypothalamus may trigger activities that the rest of the body is not ready for, and jet lag occurs.

What is the role of melatonin in jet lag?

Melatonin is a hormone that plays a key role in body rhythms and jet lag. After the sun sets, the eyes perceive darkness and alert the hypothalamus to begin releasing melatonin, which promotes sleep. Conversely, when the eyes perceive sunlight, they tell the hypothalamus to withhold melatonin production. However, the hypothalamus cannot readjust its schedule instantly; it takes several days.

Does the direction of travel matter?

Yes. Travelers flying north or south in the same time zone typically experience the fewest problems because the time of day always remains the same as in the place where the flight originated. To be sure, these travelers may experience discomfort, but this usually results from confinement in an airplane for a long time or from differences in climate, culture, and diet at the destination location. Time does not play a role.

Travelers flying east, on the other hand, typically experience the most problems because they lose time -- lots of it. For example, on a flight from Washington, D.C., to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, a traveler loses eight hours. Meals, sleep, bowel habits, and other daily routines are all pushed ahead eight hours.

Travelers flying west gain time and usually have an easier time adjusting than eastward travelers. However, they too experience symptoms of jet lag after landing because they still must adjust to a different schedule.

Do the symptoms of jet lag vary in intensity?

Yes. Persons flying across only one or two time zones may be able to adjust without noticeable effects of the time change. Those flying across three or more time zones, on the other hand, will likely develop noticeable symptoms of jet lag. Generally, the intensity of symptoms varies in relation to the number of time zones crossed and the direction of travel.

hat are the best ways to cope with jet lag?

The following are twelve tips to help travelers minimize the effects of jet lag:

Tip 1: Stay in Shape

If you are in good physical condition, stay that way. In other words, long before you embark, continue to exercise, eat right, and get plenty of rest. Your physical stamina and conditioning will enable you to cope better after you land. If you are not physically fit, why not begin shaping up several weeks before your trip? There's no better time.

Tip 2: Get Medical Advice

If you have a medical condition that requires monitoring (such as diabetes or heart disease), consult your physician well in advance of your departure to plan a coping strategy that includes medication schedules and doctor's appointments, if necessary, in the destination time zone.

Tip 3: Change Your Schedule

If your stay in the destination time zone will last more than just a few days, begin adjusting your body to the new time zone before you leave. For example, if you are traveling from the U.S. to Europe for a one-month vacation, set your daily routine back an hour or more three to four weeks before departure. Then, set it back another hour the following week and the week after that. Easing into the new schedule gradually in familiar surroundings will save your body the shock of adjusting all at once.

Tip 4: Avoid Alcohol

Do not drink alcoholic beverages the day before your flight, during your flight, or the day after your flight. These beverages can cause dehydration, disrupt sleeping schedules, and trigger nausea and general discomfort.

Tip 5: Avoid Caffeine

Likewise, do not drink caffeinated beverages before, during, or just after the flight. Caffeine can also cause dehydration and disrupt sleeping schedules. What's more, caffeine can jangle your nerves and intensify any travel anxiety you may already be feeling.

Tip 6: Drink Water

Drink plenty of water, especially during the flight, to counteract the effects of the dry atmosphere inside the plane. Consider taking your own water container aboard the airplane.

Tip 7: Move Around on the Plane

While seated during your flight, exercise your legs from time to time. Move them up and down and back and forth. Bend your knees. Stand up and sit down. Every hour or two, get up and walk around. Do not take sleeping pills and do not nap for more than an hour at a time.

These measures have a twofold purpose. First, they reduce your risk of developing a blood clot in the legs. Research shows that long periods of sitting can slow blood movement in and to the legs, thereby increasing the risk of a clot. The seat is partly to blame. It presses against the veins in the leg, restricting blood flow. Inactivity also plays a role. It decelerates the movement of blood through veins. If a clot forms, it sometimes breaks loose and travels to the lungs, lodges in an artery, and inhibits blood flow. The victim may experience pain and breathing problems and cough up blood. If the clot is large, the victim could die. Second, remaining active--even in a small way--revitalizes and refreshes your body, wards off stiffness, and promotes mental and physical acuity.

Tip 8: Break Up Your Trip

If you are traveling across eight, ten, or even twelve time zones, break up your trip, if feasible, with a stay in a city about halfway to your destination. For example, if you are traveling from New York to Bombay, India, schedule a stopover of a few days in Dublin or Paris. (At noon in New York, it is 5 p.m. in Dublin, 6 p.m. in Paris and 10:30 p.m. in Bombay.)

Tip 9: Wear Comfortable Shoes and Clothes

On a long trip, how you feel is more important than how you look. So treat your body to comfortable clothes and shoes. Avoid items of apparel that pinch, restrict, or chafe. When selecting your trip ensemble, keep in mind the climate in your destination time zone. Dress for your destination.

Tip 10: Check Your Accommodations

Upon arrival, if you are staying at a hotel, check to see that beds and bathroom facilities are satisfactory and that cooling and heating systems are in good working order. If the room is unsuitable, ask for another. It's no fun to go to bed on a hot August night only to discover that the air-conditioning doesn't work!

Tip 11: Adapt to the Local Schedule

The sooner you adapt to the local schedule, the quicker your body will adjust. Therefore, if you arrive at noon local time (but 6 a.m. your time), eat lunch, not breakfast. During the day, expose your body to sunlight by taking walks or sitting in outdoor cafes. The sunlight will cue your hypothalamus to reduce the production of sleep-inducing melatonin during the day, thereby initiating the process of resetting your internal clock.

Tip 12: Use Sleeping Medications Wisely--Or Not At All

Try to establish sleeping patterns without resorting to pills. However, if you have difficulty sleeping on the first two or three nights, it's okay to take a mild sedative if your physician has prescribed one. But wean yourself off the sedative as soon as possible. Otherwise, it could become habit-forming.

Should I take melatonin?

Another option -- a controversial one -- is synthetic melatonin, which is classified in the U.S. as a dietary supplement. A study in the March 18, 1989, British Medical Journal reported that taking synthetic melatonin tablets can help travelers restore normal sleeping patterns. In that study, twenty volunteers traveling back and forth between New Zealand and England took daily doses of either 5 milligrams of melatonin or a placebo (a blank) before, during, and after their flights. Those taking melatonin returned to their normal sleep patterns in 2.85 days on average compared with 4.15 days for those taking a placebo.

However, scientists in the U.S. and many other countries are not yet convinced that enough evidence exists to prove the efficacy of over-the-counter (OTC) melatonin tablets. These scientists also point out the following: (1) No information has been compiled on the long-term effects of taking melatonin. (2) No watchdog measures are in place to assure that all OTC melatonin products meet minimum standards. In an FDA meeting held on June 8, 1999, Adrian Fugh-Berman, Ph.D., chairman of the National Woman's Health Network, argued that melatonin should not be considered a dietary supplement and should be removed from the market.

Nevertheless, if you think you'd like to try melatonin tablets, it would be a good idea to check first with your healthcare provider