Jet Lag – How Can Vacationers Reduce The Risk When They Fly?

In their findings, many medical experts state that air travelers usually experience a worse bout of jet lag when they fly from east to west. In general, the more time zones travelers fly across, flying from east to west, the more severe the their symptoms of jet lag will be. However, passengers will only experience a milder case of jet lag when they are on air flights traveling from west to east.

If travelers fly north to south, or south to north, for thousands of miles, they will not experience jet lag. But when the pilot of the airplane starts flying in an east to west direction and crosses more than one or two time zones, they can experience jet lag.

Passengers will not generally experience the symptoms of jet lag until after they exit the plane. That’s when their biological clocks will start to make internal adjustments inside their bodies to coincide more closely with the local time at their destination. When air travelers cross one, or even two time zones, their bodies can usually adjust very quickly. However, when travelers are in poor health or not feeling well before the flight, the jet lag problem can be compounded.

The following information may lessen the effects of jet lag when you fly.

Try to catch a flight that arrives at your vacation destination in daylight hours. Immediately fit in with the new time zone and do not go to bed. If you feel tired and want to take a short snooze, do it in a well lighted place.

In the evening, sleep in a darkened room as the darkness will help prepare your brain for sleep.

You should also avoid looking at television or computer screens as they are bright and have high frequencies that can easily over-stimulate your brain.

Do not consume alcohol or any drinks such as coffee and soda that contain caffeine until your symptoms of jet lag wear off, as it can disrupt your sleep.

You may want to consider taking a melatonin tablet or capsule (as many air travelers do) in the early evening (your time) to help you adjust to the time zone at your destination. You may still have to take a dose of melatonin for the next three or four evenings in a row before you go to bed in this new location to help you readjust your biological clock. If you have never taken melatonin before, you should ask your doctor or local pharmacist for more information in regards to the suggested dosage.