| The summer holiday season is with us again and | | | | fly across four or more time zones then the |
| many thousands of us will be jetting off to far flung | | | | difference will be noticeable and your body clock will |
| corners of the globe to lie on a tropical beach and | | | | take longer and longer to adjust as you cross more |
| soak up the sun, to trek through some of world's | | | | and more time zones. |
| most beautiful wilderness countryside, to see some | | | | In our example of flying from Sydney to London |
| of the architectural wonders of the world or to | | | | your body clock will take several days to adjust itself |
| simply explore new countries and cultures. And, | | | | fully and, in the meantime, you are likely to find |
| unfortunately, many thousands of us will find the first | | | | yourself suffering from insomnia, finding it difficult to |
| few days of our vacation will also see us trying to | | | | get to sleep at night and to get up in the morning, |
| recover from the effects of jet lag. | | | | feeling tired during the day, possibly experiencing |
| But is jet lag an inevitable part of modern long-haul | | | | difficulty in eating with nausea, stomach upset, a |
| travel? | | | | feeling of dehydration, a headache, and much more. |
| The answer to this question depends very much on | | | | So what can be done? |
| where you are flying to. If you start your journey in | | | | There are a whole variety of 'traditional' remedies for |
| Sydney, Australia and fly to Tokyo, Japan then you | | | | jet lag including diets, formulas, over-the-counter |
| will not experience any jet lag at all because, even | | | | medication, sleeping pills, melatonin and others and |
| though you are flying some 7,000 miles, your journey | | | | each has its supporters and detractors, but are these |
| essentially takes you due north so that your starting | | | | 'traditional' remedies the answer? |
| point and destination lie in the same time zone. | | | | The simple answer to this question is no. These |
| However, if you fly from Sydney to London, England | | | | 'traditional' remedies do not work and, in some cases, |
| then you will fly east to west across ten standard | | | | will actually make your jet lag worse. |
| time zones and you will certainly experience jet lag. | | | | Treating jet lag is not a matter of pills and formulas, |
| Jet lag is really nothing more than the result of your | | | | but requires you to devise a plan centered on your |
| own internal body clock being out of synchronization | | | | specific travel plans and lifestyle which allows you to |
| with local time and, while your body clock can adjust | | | | assist your body's natural process of adjusting its |
| itself to come into line with local time, adjusting your | | | | own internal body clock. This means taking a series |
| body clock takes time. | | | | of steps in preparation for your journey, as well as |
| If you fly across just two or three time zones then | | | | during your flight and at your destination. In some |
| the time difference experienced is small enough that | | | | cases these will be enough to help you avoid jet lag |
| you probably will not really notice it greatly and your | | | | altogether and, in others, they will certainly help to |
| internal clock will adjust quite quickly. However, if you | | | | reduce the effects of jet lag considerably. |