Talk:Jet lag/Archive

Archive 2005-2011

Added July-August 2007
Article is very poorly written. I would rewrite it myself but I lack necessarily writing skills. <-- Seconded, this article is written very horribly (for instance "there is no prevetion bye destination time zone, as soon as it is practical, and join the new rhythm. / However the best recovery (especially for younger people) would be to sleep at night at the destination time zone." First about the acupuncture paragraph-> http://skepdic.com/acupunc.html

Second, good information can be found here about how cicardian rhytm and homeostatic system works. http://www.supermemo.com/articles/sleep.htm


 * The paragraphs above were added by (at least?) 2 editors, in July-August 2007. Adding heading to get these comments below TOC. --Hordaland (talk) 01:46, 6 September 2008 (UTC)

symPtoms
death by jet lag http://oscar.virginia.edu/researchnews/x9246.xml —Preceding unsigned comment added by Kubbur (talk • contribs) 20:54, 29 January 2008 (UTC)

Neutrality regarding Treatments
"Other remedies have not been proven to be safe or effective." I dispute the neutrality of that statement. There are tens of thousands of licensed Doctors around the nation prescribing all kinds of treatments for the treatment of jet lag, so there is no unbiased and neutral way to arbitrarily dispel them all. Maybe you could get away with quoting someone, including the NIH. But you can't academically just say that melatonin may show promise, but other things have not been proven to be safe or effective. Besides which, "proof" is a subjective word.Mrcolj 18:01, May 15, 2005 (UTC)

Please, give references or delete:
There is no firm agreement as to which direction of travel is worse. Some believe that travelling east is worse as it "accelerates" the passage through various time zones (a night might only last 3 hours when flying east), and because the symptoms of travelling west, such as waking earlier in the morning, can be easier to integrate with ordinary life. Others counter that the impact is worse when one travels away from one's "habitual" time zone, and is minimised when returning to it.Jclerman 16:45, 25 October 2005 (UTC)

The comment at the end saying that there's a bigger difference in +/-6h travel than +/-11 travel is simply wrong. While it's true that there's a bigger difference in local times between +6 and -6 than between +11 and -11 (12h vs 2h), that's completely irrelevant to a jet lag article, as a traveller experiences the jet lag after each leg of the journey. The traveller travels from "here" (+0) to either +6 or -6, rarely both. And it's a bigger difference from local time to travel to +/-11 than +/-6 Scottb 30 Dec 2006.

Prevention and recovery
As a frequent traveler who spends half his life in the air, hopping timezones, I can, from my own experience, say that - and I have tried a lot - the only thing that really helps is good sleep aboard and lots to drink. Melatonin also had some sort of effect, however neglegible.

In either way, I cannot see how that statement compromises the neutrality of the article? You work for a pharmacy company?

Jet lag is really annoying and if you have it, you will die. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 168.216.240.39 (talk) 12:29, 26 October 2011 (UTC)

Jet Lag - What's it All About
The subject of "jet lag" may seem trivial to many travelers and some biology researchers. There is, however, a large commuity of researchers (chronobiology )trying to understand the mechanisms involved in similar effects and other circandian effects. There are major issues on job performance of shift workers and others. However, jet lag is not a trivial effect. As a major program manager for an American East Coast based corporation and a Japanese corporation, I made over 50+ trips to Japan (exact travel was from JFK or EWR to Narita). I suffered from jet lag and like many people who report on it, I always found that it was minimized when traveling west and greatly increased in the eastboaund travel. Specifically, on a trip to Japan I would recover from jet lag within two days, however, one the return trip I would have jet lag effects for up to ten days. I made many observations, as a scientist, and reviewed the present literature that I cold find. I have also traveled in the north-south direction and noticed no effects of jet lag, when the time zone shifts were +/- 1 hours. I have flown from NYC to Panama City, Pamana and even though the trip is a long one (8+ hours) there were no jet lag effects. There have been many, well though out experiements, on circandian effects and many effects have been documented in peer-reviewed journals. Since there has been such study it is clear that there is some validity to the "jet lag" effect. Rather complex experiments have been conducted in which subjects, people, have been placed in experimetal chambers with control over light and dark and then their "free running" biorhythms have been recorded. There are many results and they are not all consistent. I view this not as a failing of the researchers, but a lack of understanding of all the variables that are involved in the subject.

It it clear from the research conducted that there are several (many bio-rhythms) that are effecting our bodily functions on a daily basis. Feeding cycles, light-dark cycles, etc. all are active and involved in the daily functions of the human.

So at this point, let me state that this is a very complex subject, varies in intensity with various individuals and biological organisms, and is not an easy subject to analyse.

Thus let me give you my personal exsperience. I will also note that I have talked with many persons that have been involved in international work and many - the majority - have found similar effects as I did. I suffered from jet lag. No one can deny my disturbed sleep cycles and the time necessary to adjust to the new cycles. This is my experience and as a professional scientist - PhD in theoretical physics - I was careful to note the conditions that induced the jet lag.

The flights to Japan left JFK and/or EWR at about 1300 local time and lasted 14 hours in the air. The standard procedure on these flights was to close the windows, serve a dinner and then let the passageners either sleep, read, or watch movies for most of the flight. The cabin was at a very low light level. After the long flight the plane landed in Narita at about 1600 hours local time and everyone then went through the deboarding, customs, immigration ritual. We then traveled by first class train to our destination hotel. We had dinner and then went to sleep, I had about one dozen engineers with me on each trip and they all have some degree of jet lag. It was a common subject each morning at breakfast. With respect to me, I recovered from jet lag and was fully syn-ed with local time within three days. The same was true with respect to my engineering staff.

On the return flight, the flight left Narita at about 1700 hours and landed in EWR or JFK at about 1600 hours local time, the next day. I use the term next day, in the following sense. On the westbound flights to Japan, then sun made very little relative motion during the flight. On the return trip, the night approached quickly and then day break and finally landing in the afternoon. I pose this statement in the following manner, so that one can think of the effect on one's biology. Westbound the day is extended and eastbound the day is shortened.

I also noticed that when we experienced these flights on or near weekends, I would return home and I love to work in the garden for relaxation. The bright skies essentially eliminated my jet lag, except that after the weekend ended and I returned to indoor professional work, the jet lag came back and took a long time to resolve it itself. Therefore, from my own experiences I agree with many researchers that the light (day-night effect) is a powerful one, but it is not the only factor involved. Something else is involved. We are indeed complex biological creatures.

It was during one of the flights to Japan that I began to develop a simplistic model of the "jet lag" effect. I drew a diagram of the sun, moon and earth on a piece of paper and noted the jet's path and the motion of the celestial bodies I just mentioned.

On the westbound flight, the flight lifted into the air and the earth revolved below it. The sun and the moon essentially did not move at all. When the plane landed 14 hours later, the motion of the three bodies was equivalent to the motion of about 3 hours when one is one stationary on land. Note the 3 day - 3v hour correlation.

On the eastbound flight, the sample diagram yielded the fact the the plane lifted into the air and circled the earth rather rapidly. The 14 hour flight was equivalent to a 24+ hour day on the surface of the earth.

Now this may seem unimportant to many, but I thought back on my course work in linear system analysis and the effects of impulse and "zero" function analysis. We are very complex creatures, so the easiest model to build is the linear systems model. It is a standard analysis technique. The model yields the following effect - for a "null" input, the output of a linear system is "null" and quickly sycnhs with the following periodic input, however, for the "impulse" input, the output shows a long time disturbance, until it finally settles into its periodic rhythm. I won't bore anyone with Fourier tramsforms.

It should be pointed out that there are many bilogical, but not all biological functions that are related to the relative motion of the earth, moon and sun. One has to really consider the motion of the center of gravity of the bodies. For example, the ocean's tides create tidal flows that carry nutrients to many forms of life, such as clams, mussels, oysters, coral, etc. and they synch themselves to the tidal flows, for feeding purposes. The tidal flows are determined by the motion of the earth, moon and sun.

Now before anyone jumps to the conslusion that I am proposing that we are all "lunatics", with our bio-rhythms controlled by the moon, let me point out that we may carry the genetic code of the earliest life forms and partially synch ourselves to the celestial bodies. I am not necessarily implying the gravitonal effect of these bodies, but there may be cycles in the the magnetic and electric fields of the earth, induced by the motion of the celestial bodies.

Let me give you an example, as I experienced ocean sailor and user of SSB (single side band radio commuication) the ionosphere changes with the rotation of the earth and radio waves reflect differently off the ionosphere in day vs. night. The U.S. National Weather Service that broadcasts weather reports to the marine community, (ships, ports and any other interested users) states the best daytime and the best night time frequencies to use.

Thus at this point let me summarize as follows. I have for many years suffered from the effects of jet lag, the westbound effect is much less than the eastbound efffect, many of the other professionals that had similar travel, that I have discussed this with have also reported the same effect to me, The "eastbound-westbound" effect. They have also reported the lack of the north-south jet lag effect. Such a model is consistent with the relative motion of the major three celestial bodies that affect our lives. I am not implying that gravity, and its minor oscillations with the motion of three bodies is the cause of "jet lag". However, I am stating that "jet lag" is a natural consequence of a mathematical linear systems analysis of the effect. The motion of the three bodies may effect us through a variety of ways and they need to be idetified and carefully examined.

A final thought, space travel will be dependent upon our understanding of these effects. I have not be able to access all of NASA's reports or results, but we are fully aware that long term weightness can induce non-reversible bone/calcium loss. That is why astronauts have certain exercise programs. They also have major effects on their sleep-wake patterns and, I think that it would be very helpful to have access to this information for analysis by others beside the "space-agency".

There is a lot of great physics questions here and, as a professional scientist, I eagerly seek information as to the current understanding of this effect - "jet lag".--Jtclemens 18:20, 6 January 2006 (UTC)

Does anyone registered wanna tag it? You're absolutely right, this article sticks in my craw. Try flying to Hawaii for college--jet lag can't stand up to it :)

Prevention works for me
My initial experience with jet-lag between Europe and Japan were like 2-3 day nasty hangovers. I tried the Melatonin, with minor effects - your mileage may vary. Now, with over 25 trips behind me, some of them from Japan to the U.S., I found what works for me and experience only very mild symptoms, like a more pronounced weak afternoon and a need for an early evening bedtime. My traveling regimen: 1. lots of hydration: water, green tea, juices (which I don't like too much) at least a cup an hour, better two, but no coffee and no alcohol at all (would be dehydrating), 2. sleep at least 4h on board (not that comfy in economy, but it helps), 3. back on the ground, drink some more. The downside: I must ask for an aisle seat because I need the restroom more often. Bernd in Japan 09:13, 2 March 2006 (UTC)

Jet lag and Daylight Saving Time
Can daylight saving changes be considered jet lag-like due to the fact that in essence, it is like moving into a different time zone? User:Crd721
 * To the extent that the 1 hr change affects some individuals, yes. It has been claimed that traffic accidents increase on the switch days. I can't recall the authors & title of the book at this time. It was published in the early 1980s. Jclerman 07:22, 13 March 2006 (UTC)
 * "Spring forward" is hard as hell. "Fall back" is easy. Sagittarian Milky Way (talk) 19:31, 22 April 2010 (UTC)

Description of Jet Lag needed
There are currently sections on Causation and Prevention/Recovery but nothing written on what Jet Lag actually is.

So what is it? Everything I can write on the issue will have no references or sources. MrHen 00:10, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Jet Lag is simply dehydration caused by the Cabin Air which is 10 times drier than that of the world's driest deserts due to the air at altitude having little to no moisture. 50% of the air inhaled is from the outside, whilst the other 50% is recirculated air from the cabin. As a result, your skin releases moisture which almost immediately evaporates. You also loose a large amount of fluid from exhaling, which after only 1 1/2 to 2 hours, will cause the body to start dehydrating if that fluid is not replenished. As a First Officer with United based out of Tokyo doing flights both to the US and other ports in Asia, United and virtually all other airlines have instructed their Flight Crews to combat Jet Lag (And if travelling over time zones, combat the infamous Internal Clock Issue) by doing the following two things. One, drink at least 35-40 ounces of water (Not sodas or alcohol which will speed the process up) per hour even if you don't feel thirsty. Second, to adjust to the new time zone, you must remain awake for at least 90% of your flight. This guarantees little to no interruption to the intake of water, and it also helps the body adjust. Upon arrival at your destination, go straight to the hotel and sleep for exactly two hours. Once the two hours are complete, wake up and remain awake and active for the remainder of the day. This allows the body to adjust that day to the time zone you are in, regardless of how far ahead or behind you are from what you were orginally in.

It's unfortunate that most people have been led to believe that Jet Lag is related solely to the time zone issue, but in reality you can receive it even on a flight fron NYC to Miami if you dont drink any fluid during the flight.

Jet lag is not solely a time zone issue, as you pointed out, but time zone changes to play a part however minor. The next time I travel to the CONUS, I'll follow your remedy regarding the intake of fluids. As far as remaining awake for 90 percent of the flight, what about connections and layovers? Do I account for those periods of time as well?Jlujan69 22:17, 14 November 2006 (UTC)

And it wouldn't make much sense to sleep for only two hours if you arrived there at bed-time local time, would it?! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.239.174.250 (talk) 20:50, 3 October 2007 (UTC)

going without sleep
Doesn't jet lag also refer (in common parlance anyway) to the effects of lack of sleep/poor sleep while travelling somewhere? Or that it gets mixed into it... For example, if you fly from LA to London and get little if any sleep, seperate from just the time zone thing, there is going to be a lot of fatigue, disorientation, and other symptoms of going without sleep. So I would like to suggest that a mention of this effect (either to contrast it with 'real' jetlag, or talk about what it adds to the mixture). 169.233.20.230 01:13, 31 May 2006 (UTC)


 * Well, I don't know about LA to London, but from Chicago to London on most commerical flights if you don't sleep at all on the flight most people living in Chicago would definately staying up way past their normal bed time. However on the way back, for most people living in London the flight back would entirely be during normal waking hours. It's also note worthy that starting in aprox mid-Spring and lasting until aprox mid-Summer even the eastbound flights will not experence full darkness due to how far north the flight path is. Jon 15:39, 15 June 2007 (UTC)

description and everything else
Don't innovate. Stick to the MeSH definition: Jet Lag Syndrome: A chronobiologic disorder resulting from rapid travel across a number of time zones, characterized by insomnia or hypersomnolence, fatigue, behavioral symptoms, headaches, and gastrointestinal disturbances. (From Cooper, Sleep, 1994, pp593-8) Year introduced: 2000 MeSH can be found as part of PubMed. Jclerman 01:24, 31 May 2006 (UTC)

The site that is referenced regarding the fact that males experience jet lag less than females doesn't seem to support that fact. Embokias 02:51, 6 July 2007 (UTC)

Melatonin and Jet Lag
In your text, it says... "Recent research shows that the pineal hormone melatonin may reduce the effects of jet lag. Studies have not identified side effects from such short-term use. [1] Many products on the market claim to treat the effects of jet lag. Since the experience of jet lag varies among different individuals, it is difficult to assess the efficacy of any single remedy....."

Indeed, melatonin may well reduce the effects of jet lag through its effects on the circadian system. However, recent studies have shown that it can significantly affect immune status - possibly in adverse ways in people with autoimmune disorders. I think it was respiratory illnesses that were of most concern - such as patients with asthma. This would be an adverse side effect! In North America melatonin is available over the counter and this became such a serious issue that in Canada, sale was temporarily suspended. There are still travel advisory statements especially wrt patients with autoimmune disorders that can be easily accessed through the web and other sites. Perhaps less of an issue in Europe, where it's hormone status results in prescription instead of OTC. 24.137.200.118 02:28, 7 October 2006 (UTC)

removed advert in spurious reference
there was a reference regarding 'prevention and recovery', but this cited www.nojetlag.com, a website advertising a homoepathic treatment. i have removed the reference. Lloydic 22:05, 12 March 2007 (UTC)

Unfair times: 3 hours vs. 7 hours - does nothing with Jet lag
Look @ the example in the article:

AL. Arrival Time (Local Clock): 18:55 the next day

AB. Arrival Time (Biological Clock): 22:55 the next day

BL. Bed Time (Local Clock): 22:00 the next day

BB. Bed Time (Biological Clock): 06:00 the next day

BL-AL=3 hours; BB-AB=7hours; BL-AL=BB-AB+4 and IMHO it should be (for FAIR comparison) BL-AL=BB-AB

So, its NOT fair comparison. Yes, you need few more hours (unlike at home) to go to bed (like check-out, get to (and sometimes to find) hotel, talk to your family or friends, (in some country) (immediate) immigration office visit etc). But [IMHO] it does have nothing [to do] with time zone changing/jet flying. It's [IMHO] like you watch TV or talk to friends or play games or just work in your office longer, eg. to 3am. Then, of course, next day waking up @ 6am [you are (UR)] tired and useless all the day. But that does nothing [to do, IMHO] with jet flag/time_zone changing etc. It is [IMHO] about fatigue/little sleeping, your age, your health status, your life style ...

Jan Kunder 20:10, 24 October 2007 (UTC)

Shine a light
Is it worth mentioning the remedy of shining a light on the back of the knee to reset the body clock? I heard this mentioned on How2, and somewhere else since, so i believe it to be a true remedy. . . Anyone else heard of this? Thisnamestaken (talk) 23:25, 26 January 2008 (UTC)


 * Have indeed heard about it. The group which came to that result (Scott Campbell et al) retracted their paper after neither they nor other researchers could duplicate the result. They apparently did not take care to shield the subjects' eyes, and the small changes they found in circadian rhythms must be attributable to light striking the retina.  --Hordaland (talk) 13:55, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Removed paragraph
I've just removed the following:

''There have been links made with jet lag and contamination of cabin air by the neurotoxin TCP or Tricresylphosphate from contaminated engine bleed air, which supplies the cabin pressurisation system, although these have not been substantiated, and aircraft manufacturers are adamant that air quality is generally high. ''

The described conditions should be the same on any long flight, not just a transmeridian one. This topic doesn't belong in this article. --Hordaland (talk) 21:25, 4 June 2008 (UTC)


 * The article Bleed air covers this topic. Reasonably enough, jetlag / jet-lag / jet lag is not mentioned in that article.  --Hordaland (talk) 21:28, 4 June 2008 (UTC)

Net lag
The article about net lag sounds at best only vaguely related and at worst like complete nonsense. There's no citations or anything for it, either. If anyone has some contributions for it that would make it worthwhile, feel free, otherwise I'm deleting it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 213.126.132.70 (talk) 12:30, 15 October 2008 (UTC)


 * Good call. I can see that if one is living in one time zone and working/socializing on the web almost entirely in another, one's circadian rhythms might be confused.  That could be much like working the night shift.  We'd want at least one very good source for the cute name Net lag, before considering including it here.
 * I've taken the liberty of moving your comment to the bottom of the page, where it belongs. - Hordaland (talk) 22:51, 24 November 2008 (UTC)

Bad Example
The example assumes that the traveler wouldn't sleep until he or she arrives in London. Personally, I fall asleep easily after dark, but have a hard time sleeping during daylight hours, so traveling eastward is usually much less taxing for me than traveling westward (I have never passed the International Date Line.) Perhaps the example should include flights leaving during the same time of the day. Waxhaw (talk) 21:56, 5 March 2009 (UTC)

Dr Krebs
''Dr Charles Krebs a reknown scientist and expert in human brain functionality devised a solution using acupressure. A world traveller himself on lecture tours and the like created a need for him to be "on the job" quite often the day after a long haul flight. He has identified a series of 12 acupoints (Luo Points) that when finger pressure is applied at the calculated time determined from your departure time, the total hours travelled and your arrival time, your body clock will "re sync" to the current local time of the country you are in. He has used the system for 10 years now and basically guarantees you will end up with "no more jet lag". It would certainly appear that acupressure is worth considering as a remedy to Jet Lag.''

Above paragraph was added to article. Needs reliable source (other than the "reknown[sic] scientist" himself) before consideration. Removed, pending serious, independent source. If re-added, must also be written in encyclopedic style without directly addressing "you". - Hordaland (talk) 00:08, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Symptoms: re-reverting
I'll be re-reverting the edit by newly-blocked user:Piroonangel14. One thing is the quality of the source with its "100% Hassle-Free Money Guarantee", but that's not my main point. That source lists some symptoms and further down the page points out specifically which of these symptoms are caused by air travel in general, not by time change: "In these instances, the sickness has been caused by factors others [sic] jet lag. So whilst jet lag can seem to be the cause of sickness, it may not always be the case." In other words, if you'll get swollen feet flying from New York to Europe, you'll be having the same problem flying from New York to Peru. - Hordaland (talk) 21:45, 16 June 2009 (UTC)

GMT +14 has NOTHING to do with jet lag
Crossing the International Date Line does not contribute to jet lag, as the guide for calculating jet lag is the number of time zones crossed, and the maximum possible disruption is plus or minus fourteen hours.

Just because the island nation of Kiribati made a time zone of GMT+14 instead of GMT-10, doesn't mean there's an extra two hours of jet lag possible. Although the article states Crossing the International Date Line does not contribute to jet lag, not crossing it has no effect either. In other words, the GMT+14 time zone pushes the date line further east, from where it normally would be (180 degrees longitude). I'm changing the article to a 12 hour maximum. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Lifung (talk • contribs) 23:19, 11 August 2009 (UTC)
 * You are correct. It the difference that matters not the actual time zone. And travelling with 14 hours time zone change (like New York-Tokyo) is the same as having 8 hours jet lag and changing date. --BIL (talk) 11:09, 12 August 2009 (UTC)


 * Actually, a 14 hr. time zone change would have 10 hours of jet lag (w/date changing). The max is 12 hours, so 13h=11h, 14h=10h, 15h=9h, etc. Or just subtract from 24h. Time change (if over 12h) plus jet lag ALWAYS equals 24h. Lifung (talk) 18:41, 27 August 2009 (UTC)

Melatonin dosage
The reference #8 gives the melatonin dosage as between 0.3mg and 5mg, not 0.5mg. This is in agreement with other studies. Nolween (talk) 11:06, 29 July 2010 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Nolween (talk • contribs) 11:04, 29 July 2010 (UTC)