There are endless hassles of plane travel like flight cancellations, lost luggage, overcrowded airports and so on. The jet lag can add to all this and make things more complicated. Read on to learn more about jet lag and tips to avoid it easily.
According to the experts, jet lag is a sleep disorder that might affect those who travel across different time zones frequently. They believe that your body consists of an internal clock or circadian rhythms. It gives you signals when you must be asleep or awake. Jet lag occurs because your body is not able to synchronize with the new time zone.
Learn more about the symptoms
If you cross more time zones, there is a better chances that you will fall victim of jet lag. According to a survey, eastbound passengers experience more of it as compared to the west flying ones. The most common symptoms of the jet lag include:
- Mood changes
- Daytime fatigue
- Insomnia
- Staying alert or facing difficulty while concentrating
- Sudden feeling of discomfort
Most of you will face these symptoms within two days of the travel. It will take you a day or so to recover from this. Jet lag could also come under circadian rhythm disorder. However, it is a temporary situation. It might disrupt the holidays if not taken care of.
How to fight jet lag
You must plan a flight overnight. If you will start planning earlier, you will get better options. There is a better chance of falling asleep than it would be on a noon flight. Moreover, you can have dinner at a normal time. In this way, your body will get ample time to reset the internal clock.
Adjusting the internal clock gradually is a brilliant idea. You have to shift the eating and sleeping schedule as per the destination city. Those who are heading east could sleep an hour earlier. Similarly, those who are heading west could sleep an hour later.
Stress is a big factor in travel and can prevent you from going to sleep at a good time to prevent jetlag. You don’t need to pop several dozen sleeping pills in order to fight this though as there are several stress-reducing and sleep-inducing natural remedies you could try.
For example medical marijuana (though you may need to read the rules around marijuana in the places you are travelling to, as well as learn how to weigh weed without scale so you don’t need to take one on your flight)
Melatonin gummies are another remedy you could try. This is a natural sleep hormone your body produces when the sun goes down in order to prepare you for bed. By taking it while the sun is still up you could achieve sleep at the time you want to and avoid jetlag.
You can even consider your mattress because it can be the source of better or worse sleep. You can visit mattress inquirer to learn how to deal with such situations.
Things to avoid before flight
Make sure that you do not have coffee at least 12 hours before the flight. Not only this, you must abstain from caffeine during the flight too. It might impact the stimulation and alertness. Besides this, it will drop the blood sugar level too. However, this will wake up quickly once you have fallen asleep.
Before travelling you can sync the watch as per the destination time zone. In this way, you will be mentally prepared for the difference. It is important that you keep the body hydrated always. Dehydration can add to the severity of adverse symptoms of jet lag.
The level of humidity is comparatively low in the planes. Hence. It is essential to drink lot of water during the flight. According to the experts, you must drink at least 8 ounces of water. Besides this, you must carry a lip balm in the flight. It will keep your lips moisturized.
Sleeping on the plane could be beneficial for those who are travelling from west to east. This rest will help your body to deal with the symptoms of jet lag. If possible, you must avoid the rear of the place. Those who sit in the back have to experience turbulence. Moreover, you must pack a blanket and the pillow too. Besides this, you could keep ear plugs, the noise cancelling headphones and a sleeping mask in the handbag.
There are few jet lag remedies you could follow to prevent the jet lag. You could rely on the melatonin and the lavender oil. Sunlight is also an important natural tool to regulate this cycle.