Jet lag disorder
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Jet lag, also called jet lag disorder, is a temporary sleep problem that can affect anyone who quickly travels across multiple time zones.
Your body has its own internal clock, or circadian rhythms, that signals your body when to stay awake and when to sleep. Jet lag occurs because your body’s clock is still synced to your original time zone, instead of to the time zone where you’ve traveled. The more time zones crossed, the more likely you are to experience jet lag.
Jet lag can cause daytime fatigue, an unwell feeling, difficulty staying alert and gastrointestinal problems. Jet lag is temporary, but it can significantly reduce your vacation or business travel comfort. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to help prevent or minimize jet lag.
Symptoms of jet lag can vary. You may experience only one symptom or you may have many. Jet lag symptoms may include:
Jet lag symptoms usually occur within a day or two of travel if you’ve traveled across at least two time zones. Symptoms are likely to be worse or last longer the more time zones that you’ve crossed, especially if you travel in an easterly direction. It usually takes about a day to recover for each time zone crossed.
Jet lag is temporary. But if you’re a frequent traveler and continually struggle with jet lag, you may benefit from seeing a sleep specialist.
Jet lag can occur anytime you cross two or more time zones. Jet lag occurs because crossing multiple time zones puts your internal clock or circadian rhythms, which regulate your sleep-wake cycle, out of sync with the time in your new locale.
For example, if you leave New York on a flight at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday, and arrive in Paris at 7:00 a.m. Wednesday, your internal clock still thinks it’s 1:00 a.m. That means you’re ready for bed just as Parisians are waking up.
And because it takes a few days for your body to adjust, your sleep-wake cycle, along with most other body functions, such as hunger and bowel habits, remains out of step with the rest of Paris.
A key influence on your internal clock is sunlight. That’s because light influences the regulation of melatonin, a hormone that helps synchronize cells throughout the body.
Certain cells in the tissue at the back of your eye (retina) transmit the light signals to an area of your brain called the hypothalamus.
At night, when the light signal is low, the hypothalamus tells the pineal gland, a small organ situated in the brain, to release melatonin. During daylight hours, the opposite occurs, and the pineal gland produces very little melatonin.
You may be able to ease your adjustment to your new time zone by exposing yourself to daylight in the new time zone so long as the timing of light is done properly.
Some research shows that changes in cabin pressure and high altitudes associated with air travel may contribute to some symptoms of jet lag, regardless of travel across time zones.
In addition, humidity levels are low in planes. If you don’t drink enough water during your flight, you can get slightly dehydrated. Dehydration may also contribute to some symptoms of jet lag.
Factors that increase the likelihood you’ll experience jet lag include:
Motor vehicle accidents caused by drowsy driving may be more likely in people who are jet-lagged.
A few basic steps may help prevent jet lag or reduce its effects:
Regulate bright light exposure. Because light exposure is one of the prime influences on your body’s circadian rhythm, regulating light exposure may help you adjust to your new location.
In general, exposure to light in the evening helps you adjust to a later than usual time zone (traveling westward), while exposure to morning light can help you adapt to an earlier time zone faster (traveling eastward).
The one exception is if you have traveled more than eight time zones from your original time zone, because your body might mistake early morning light for evening dusk. Your body might also mistake evening light for early morning light.
So, if you’ve traveled more than eight time zones to the east, wear sunglasses and avoid bright light in the morning, and then allow as much sunlight as possible in the late afternoon for the first few days in your new location.
If you have traveled west by more than eight time zones, avoid sunlight a few hours before dark for the first few days to adjust to the local time.
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Jet lag disorder
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