11.2 Travel in Australia: Jet-lag
Description
This article is from the soc.culture.australian FAQ, by Stephen Wales with numerous contributions by others.
11.2 Travel in Australia: Jet-lag
Different people have different strategies for trying to reduce the
effects of jet-lag. Here is a compilation of suggestions:
- Get a good night's sleep before the flight so you are rested.
- No binges on the night before, or specially heavy meals.
- Carry spare underwear and wash kit on plane. Change, wash face and
shave and brush teeth shortly before arrival at destination.
- Eat lightly and drink lots of liquids on the flight, but no
caffeinated drinks (coke!) until the later part of the flight. Avoid
heavy meals - airline dinners are a lot more sensible today than when
I started flying. I have a standing order for veggie meals when I fly
long distance. No booze unless you can limit it to one or two cans or
glasses. Alcohol and caffeine are diuretics which will drain you.
- Sleep or doze as much as you can. It doesn't seem to matter whether
it is real sleep or not. A blindfold often helps. A neck cushion helps.
- On arrival, get a shower ASAP. Have another before supper if you
want. Eat lightly during the day, but let yourself go in the evening.
Get to bed at a reasonable time, but try not to sleep during daylight
hours. The next morning the body clock should be 99% hoodwinked.
- Exercise (a run or whatever) from the second day on also helps things.
- Carbohydrate loading on the day or two before the flight, with extra
protein on the day of the flight, may also reduce the effects of jet
lag.
- Try to synch you body clock to your destination - i.e. when you land
don't go to bed until your normal bed time in the local time zone.
Continue to:
My Books
