Nothing will interfere with your travel plans or returning home from a trip more than a case of jet lag. This is something that happens when someone flies across different time zones faster than their body can handle. When the body gets out of sync, it causes the individual to feel lethargic and beaten down. The feeling can actually last several days.
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If you have to do some traveling into different time zones, there are some things you can do to decrease the effects of jet lag sooner rather than later. Here’s some suggestions that should help you with this process.
Plan Ahead and Regulate Your Body
Surely, you know ahead of time when you are traveling, where you are going and what time zone your destination falls within. A few days before you travel, you can start to train your body to function based on the time zone of your destination. Example: If you live in the US and are traveling to Asia, there’s a twelve-hour time difference. If possible, start sleeping and awakening closer to the times you will be rising and sleeping in Asia.
Flight Habits
There are things you can do on the plane to ensure you get ample opportunity to regulate your body to your destination’s time zone. First, you can start by setting your watch based on the time in your destination. It helps reset the time for your brain. Second, don’t spend too much time sleeping on the plane. The sleep you get when flying is not good sleep. It will leave you feeling out of sorts, which is only going to serve to exacerbate any jet lag issues you encounter on the ground. Finally, drink lots of fluid. The body tends to dehydrate at higher altitudes, which leaves your body feeling uncomfortable for hours or even days.
Avoid Napping if Possible
When you reach your destination, you might feel the need to take a nap. Regardless of how comfy your mattress is, unless you have arrived at your destination close to bedtime, immediately going to sleep is not a good idea. It’s better to take a very short nap and then get on with doing whatever it is you plan on doing on your trip.
Stay Active
You surely did not travel halfway around the world so you can hideout in a hotel room. To ensure you sleep at the right time and avoid jet lag in the process, you need to stay active and create a sense of being tired that kicks in at bedtime. One way is by learning hugely popular blackjack, which is a great way to keep the mind active. By the way, being outdoors in the daylights helps the body’s internal clock to understand when it’s time to be up and when it’s time to sleep by nightfall.
This is a lot easier to achieve if you’re flying private. Lots of people research the charter plane cost knowing that it will keep them out of the airport and on a more set schedule. Further, the entertainment options on board are usually more extensive than on a commercial flight.
Eat Foods Rich in Melatonin
Melatonin is a hormone that promotes the secretion of serotonin in the human body. Serotonin is a hormone that’s responsible for inducing sleep. You can take a dose of melatonin in pill form right before bed to help the sleep process. There are also some foods (nuts, tomatoes, bananas) rich in melatonin that could help as well.
If your trip is a week, do you really want to fight jet lag for three days. Use the information above and give yourself the best chance possible to get the rest you need while traveling. That ensures you’ll have a better chance of enjoying your travel destination.