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Jet Lag -- Top 10 Natural
Remedies
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September 10, 2011
By Louise Carr, Associate Editor and Featured Columnist
It’s 9AM in Los Angeles, 5PM in Paris and 1 o’clock
tomorrow morning in Tokyo and your brain is around 2PM
somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean. Yet somehow you
struggle through the first day of your vacation. This is jet
lag, a temporary yet frustrating disorder that strikes after
air travel across time zones. Also called "desynchronosis",
jet lag is a unique disorder that can make life very difficult
for a few days. Are you a frequent flyer searching for the
jet lag cure? Is there anything you can do to beat jet lag?
Or must we accept jet lag goes hand-in-hand with exotic
vacations and overseas business trips?
What are the Symptoms of Jet Lag?
Jet lag primarily causes fatigue and insomnia, and the
condition disrupts your sleep patterns so you have
difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep or sleeping at the
right times.
That’s not all – flyers may also experience constipation or
diarrhea, dehydration, headaches, sweating, nausea,
confusion, problems with coordination and memory loss.
You may also have trouble with an irregular heartbeat.
Many jet lag sufferers complain of being able to catch every
bug going – an increased susceptibility to illness can really
cause problems on your vacation.
What Causes Jet Lag?
Jet lag, as the name suggests, has only become possible
with the invention of air travel. We are creatures of habit
and when we find ourselves in a different time zone in the
space of a few hours, our bodies struggle to adjust
immediately to the new conditions.
It’s natural that your body will continue to operate on
lunchtime New York time even when you land at midnight,
Paris time. The brain and body become confused and
disoriented as they try to process darkness when it should
be light, dinner when you’ve just had breakfast and
bedtime when you are normally just getting into the office.
Why the disconnect? The reason is your hypothalamus, a
part of the brain that ticks through the minutes and
schedules bodily functions like hunger and sleep,
depending on the time of the day.
Your hypothalamus also regulates blood pressure,
hormones and body temperature. This is why chronically
losing sleep can cause high blood pressure. It does this
through receiving perceptions of light and dark as
transmitted through the eye. When night falls at the wrong
time, the hypothalamus triggers functions the rest of the
body isn’t ready for. It’s no wonder we suffer for the first
few days as our bodies catch up with our time zone jet
travel.
Why Do Some People Get Jet Lag and Others Don’t?
Jet lag is not a consistent, universal condition. Jet lag
affects different travelers in different ways.
Did you know that the direction of your flight helps
determine whether you get jet lag? The direction of air
travel is an important factor affecting whether you will
suffer serious jet lag or just one sleepless night.
Flying east, say from Los Angeles to Paris, causes you to
“lose” 9 hours of time. 9 hours. Your daily routines and
bodily functions are pushed forward 9 hours without giving
you time to catch up.
But traveling west creates no problems. When you travel
west, you gain time and you are not generally as affected
by jet lag, however the symptoms are still there as you
must adjust to a new time zone. The intensity of your jet
lag symptoms depends on how many time zones you cross.
If you cross the International Date Line and land two hours
before you took off, your body will need a lot longer to
recover from the confusion.
Is Jet Lag Dangerous?
Jet lag is normally an inconvenience and not considered to
be a dangerous condition, although you should take care
when driving, operating machinery, and navigating around
a busy city when you are suffering from jet lag and fatigue.
Persistent jet lag is dangerous. In fact, jet lag can shorten
your life. Experts suggest that persistent bouts of jet lag,
experienced by frequent flyers, cabin crew and also by shift
workers, can cause health problems in the long term.
A 2006 study from the University of Virginia found elderly
mice who were subjected to body clock changes similar to
those you experience when you suffer from jet lag had
shorter life spans than non-jet lagged mice. Cabin crew
and pilots, as well as transatlantic business people, may be
storing up problems for their health in the future.
For those that want to enjoy the first precious days of an
overseas vacation without being under the influence of jet
lag, what remedies help? We looked at the scientific
evidence to discover natural ways to beat jet lag and ease
air travel fatigue.
Top 10 Natural Remedies for Jet Lag
Continue reading page 1 page 2
Find out more information to improve the quality of your
sleep: Sleep Help Center / Stop Snoring /Snoring Linked to
Stroke
Related Links:
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Snoring Linked to Higher Risk of Stroke
Sleep Study 2008 Results-Americans Are Chronically Sleep Deprived
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| Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt traveling with 2 of their children at Heathrow Airport. Studies show that wearing sunglasses can reduce jet lag. |