Everything in this world has its pros and cons; travelling being the most beautiful thing, comes with its baggage called jet lag. Jet lag is basically the misery caused due travelers crossing time-zones. Human bodies are programmed to do certain things in 24 hours called circadian rhythms. When travelling long distance overseas, these daily things are disturbed. A drastic change in time zones just confuses our bodies.
Travelers like to make the most of their time overseas but sometimes fail to take in account the leap in time zones. This leads to extreme tiredness, memory issues, appetite loss, feel unwell and much more. Your body can take a few days to adjust to the new time zone. So here are a few tips that can help you avoid jet lag and set your internal clock according to the changes.
1.At least four days before you depart, gradually start syncing your internal clock according to the time zone of your destination. Try and shift your eating and sleeping patterns according to your destination’s local time. Once you arrive, you will be able to adjust easily.
2. Avoid caffeine for at least 12 hours before your travel and during your journey. Caffeine can keep you up for longer and will reduce your sleeping time. This results in you being lethargic and tired during your holiday.
3. With caffeine, you also need to limit your intake of alcohol during your flight. The air pressure in cabin can dehydrate you and the change in altitude can accelerate the effect of alcohol. Having a drink might sound like a great idea, but it worsen your jet lag and make you feel dried out.
4. Keep your body hydrated. You should drink at least 8 ounces of water every hour. With water you should also carry lip balm and moisturizer.
5. Try and take an overnight flight. You will be able to sleep better on a night flight as compared to an afternoon one. When you reach your destination it will either be day or afternoon, which will help you adjust easily.
6. Try and get some sleep on your flight. This is very important if you are travelling from west to east. As traveling can be tiring, and the only time you can relax is during your flight, so make sure you get a good night sleep in the air. This will help you tackle the problem of jet lag.
7. If you are not able to sleep, then you can have a sleeping pill. But make sure you time your dosage, as you don’t want to be dazed when you land. Also do not try a new medication for the first time on a flight, eat a medicine that you had before.
8. Once you arrive try and stay in the sunlight for as long as possible. This will help you to reset your natural clock according to your new surroundings.
9. The last thing to keep in mind is that do not sleep as soon as you reach your destination, until and unless you arrive at your destination at night. Try and stay up till the local bed time.
Jet lag can be avoided with the help of these tips, but in case you still get a jet lag, it will take about 24 hours before you settle in.
