What Causes Jet Lag?

Jet lag is a common sleep disorder suffered by many millions of travelers every day, whether traveling on business or for pleasure. In one recent survey of international business travelers, seventy four percent of those questioned said that they suffered frequently from jet lag.

Jet lag affects people of all ages, although its symptoms vary widely from person to person and tend to be more severe the older you get. Jet lag symptoms also tend to be worse if you are already suffering sleeping difficulties in advance of traveling.

Jet lag also increases with the number of time zones crossed during your journey. If the time difference between your starting point and destination is just two or three hours, then you are likely to experience little or no jet lag. However, once your journey extends across more than three time zones you will begin to experience the symptoms of jet lag, which will tend to worsen as the number of time zones increases.

So what causes jet lag?

Jet lag is caused by a significant and rapid change in time zones which result in a difference between the local time and the time recorded by your body's internal clock.

Let's say that you leave London at 11 o'clock on a Monday morning flying to Bangkok. The flight lasts twelve hours and you arrive in Bangkok at 11 o'clock that same evening London time. However, because you have flown across several time zones the local time in Bangkok is five o'clock on Tuesday morning.

By the time you've cleared immigration and customs and taken a taxi to your hotel, it's probably getting on for seven thirty in the morning and breakfast is being served at the hotel. However, as far as your internal body clock is concerned, it's still only one thirty in the morning and your body wants nothing more than to crawl into bed.

Your body contains its own internal clock which takes its time from the environment responding to such things as temperature, humidity and, most importantly, the normal daily change from daylight to darkness. These environmental factors cause your own body clock to run, much like your mantle clock, on a series of twenty four cycles, often referred to as your body's circadian rhythms.

Much as our lives are controlled by time today, your body clock is also responsible for many of your body's functions. In particular, your body clock tells your body when it is time to shut down for sleep and when it is time to wake up and start the day's activities.

By flying across several time zones and placing your body clock out balance with local time you upset the whole rhythm of your day, giving rise to such things as problems sleeping at night, staying awake during the day and eating when you wouldn't normally eat. This, in turn, leads to jet lag.

Copyright 2005 Donald Saunders ? http://help-me-to-sleep.com

Donald Saunders is the author of a number of health related publications including "Jet Lag ? A Natural Approach". Learn more about jet lag and pick up your free copy of "How To Get A Good Night's Sleep" to discover the secret to curing insomnia.

---

Young Men Trying to Imitate the 9-11 Scenario, Part I

Why did the young man near Tampa, FL fly a... Read More

Lockheed Loitering Missile Expandable Wing Concept

Smart Missiles are expensive, but effective. Efficiency in the the... Read More

Fuselage Mounted Laser Vortex Enhancer Directed to Airfoils

DARPA has developed a small laser cannon, just like Star... Read More

Cracking Aircraft Windows with Directed Sound Waves

Today our modern military scientists have found many uses for... Read More

Jet Lag ? 5 Pre-travel Steps to Reduce the Effects of Jet Lag

Ask any regular long-haul flyer about their experience of flying... Read More

Mirrors to Redirect Mini Laser Weapons on Fighters for Vortex Airflows

Recently a new airborne laser system was announced to be... Read More

Airline Security; Stewardesses The Last Line Of Defense!

Introduction:It might come as a chock to many people, including... Read More

Aviation Lawyer: Whether Passenger, Pilot or Owner, You May Need an Aviation Lawyer

If you or a family member has been the victim... Read More

Sport Aviation and Jet Aircraft

Do you want a little business jet with a lot... Read More

Business Aviation Networking Notes

The process of finding out about a job, getting interviewed,... Read More

Overcoming Jet Lag

Jet lag can be one of the worst, and certainly... Read More

Jet Lag ? 5 In-flight Tips

The secret to combating jet lag, and arriving at your... Read More

Really Cheap Airline Tickets

When you're looking for airline tickets to your specific destination,... Read More

Entering Business Aviation, Part II: Pay Rates for Flight Attendants

Pay. You know that aviation pays better than commercial, in... Read More

So You Want to Get Free Airline Tickets: Should You Choose a Reward or Cash Back Credit Card?

If you want to use a reward credit card for... Read More

Mexico to Manufacture Aircraft

It appears Mexico with its 120 million population is considering... Read More

Airbus A-380 is Pretty Big

You know the Airbus A-380 is so huge it takes... Read More

NASA SATS for Point-to-Point Air Travel Solutions

It appears NASA's studies of the future of air travel... Read More

AWACS Automated Flight Following System for Nuke Bunker Buster Accuracy

The Aerial Fire Fighting Industry uses a system called AFF... Read More

The History of the Aircraft Wash Guys, Part Three

As we study this grass roots history of a franchise... Read More

General Aviation Manufacturing is in the Tank; Hang On It is Going to Get Worse

Change is a constant, Outsourcing Jobs, Capital flows, Emerging Markets... Read More

Airbus to Build $600 Million Aircraft Manufacturing Plant in US

Airbus has announced that it will build a $600 million... Read More

Concorde Crash Conspiracy - It Could Have Been Prevented

In studying the Concorde crash the investigators determined it was... Read More

The History of the Aircraft Wash Guys, Part One

Business scholars and students throughout recent periods have studied the... Read More

Airport Travel Tips: Reducing Waiting Times

Key Travel TipsFollowing these tips will help you reduce your... Read More

Helicopters - The Multi Utility Machines

The vertical lift technology of helicopters has far more utilitarian... Read More

Common Cockpit Concepts and Convenient Configurations

One of the big pushes in aviation and military is... Read More

Private Jets: 4 Leaders in Fractional Flying

Fractional flying, you say. Is that division? Well, sort of.... Read More

Material Memory and NASA High Tech Plastics for Rotor Blades

Some new materials, types of plastics seem to be stronger... Read More

Cheap Airline Tickets! With Internet Access, The Skies The Limit For Great Deals

With easy access to the Internet, the convenience of finding... Read More

Starting an Aircraft Washing Business

So you love airplanes and you want to start an... Read More

China is Starting to Build Military Fighter Trainers

China is entering the jet fighter trainer business and set... Read More

Travel Tips For Getting Through the Airport Easier and Quicker

Traveling is different now than it was before 9/11. Arriving... Read More