jet lag Whether you're on holiday, on a business trip or just heading home, noise can become an annoyance when you're travelling, but experts say there are ways to “minimise the annoyance”, such as using different apps.
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The further you travel, the worse the jet lag becomes.
“If you cross time zones, there’s a really extreme adjustment that happens,” said Olivia Walch, CEO of the startup Akaskop and a researcher in the Department of Neurology at the University of Michigan.
“Most people are not very aware of their circadian rhythm or biological time,” she told Global News.
In recent years, a number of apps have been developed to mitigate the effects of jet lag and help people adjust their schedules to the new time zone.
Walch, who developed an app called Entrain in 2014, said such tools are “great because we don’t always intuitively know whether the light is helping you or hurting you.”
Here's what to know about jet lag and how different apps can help overcome it.
Our bodies have an internal clock, called the circadian rhythm, that takes cues from the environment to stay in tune with local time, says Ralph Mistberg, an expert in behavioral neuroscience and a professor of psychology at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, British Columbia.
This circadian rhythm regulates a person's sleep cycle, telling them when to go to bed and wake up. So when a person's body clock is out of sync with their time zone, jet lag occurs.
When the brain sees the light and food earlier or later than expected, it becomes “completely confused,” Walch said.
“I think of jet lag almost like you’re on a swing and your friend is swinging next to you, and you want to swing in sync with your friend,” Walch said.
Jet lag affects people in different ways at different times, but most commonly it affects a person's sleep.
This may mean they have trouble sleeping, falling asleep, staying awake, or feeling tired during the day.
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Some people may also experience nausea, Walch says, because your stomach may not yet be used to processing food while you eat.
But the effects of jet lag are temporary.
Walch said the general consensus is that it takes about a day for each time zone a person changes.
So if you're five hours away from where you were, it might take you about five hours to adjust and start feeling better.
Experts say there are a variety of online apps available to help alleviate jet lag, some more effective than others.
For example, Time Mover, Available on the App store and Google Play, it records your flight number and time, then sends alerts to prompt you to take actions related to light exposure, caffeine intake, taking melatonin, and diet. Each plan costs $9.99, but there is a free trial available.
Another tool called Jet Lag Cockis not an app but a website, and is free to use.
It gathers information about your flight and current sleep schedule, then algorithmically gives you a schedule for when you should try to fall asleep and seek out light.
Arc ShiftThe app developed by Walch is not a jet lag app, but focuses on overcoming shift work burnout.
Walch said the app is mainly aimed at people with irregular sleep and sleep schedules, that is, people who have jet lag problems.
The difference between apps is how accurate they are to your specific time zone, she said, but the basic idea of a jet lag app is to give people suggestions on how to get closer to their new time zone, using cues like light and food.
“I think there’s a difference in terms of practicality of the schedule and how much it can be adjusted to the constraints of people’s schedules,” Walch said.
Mistelberg, who has served as a consultant for professional sports teams including the Vancouver Canucks and the Golden State Warriors, said he typically instructs traveling players to start adjusting their schedules a day or two in advance to accommodate the new time zone.
“If you can prepare a few days in advance, that can be very helpful,” he said.
Do jet lag apps work?
Both Walch and Mistlberger stressed that no matter which app you choose to use, the most important thing to consider is the advice about lighting.
Walch said light changes the body's biological clock, so it is necessary to recommend when to be exposed to light or avoid it.
“If you don’t know anything about it, which is the case for most people, I would say if the app doesn’t focus on lighting, just ignore it,” Mistberg said.
There is currently limited scientific evidence on how effectively apps can mitigate the effects of jet lag, but Walch said there is emerging data suggesting that if you get people to relax and follow a schedule in a controlled environment, you can shift their circadian rhythms “very quickly.”
“My goal is to get people’s rhythms into sync as quickly as possible with the new time zone,” she said.
Mistelberg, who uses some of these apps himself, said he still suffers from jet lag when traveling, but they “definitely make it less painful.”
Other tips for alleviating jet lag
Walch suggests that taking a nap before a flight, known as a “sleep bank,” can help overcome the problem of going too long without sleep.
Knowing when to move and exercise can also help people overcome jet lag, she said.
Taking a supplement of melatonin, a hormone in the body that regulates sleep cycles, is another option.
Mistelberg said there is evidence that melatonin can help reset the body clock and overcome jet lag.
“A good night's sleep can solve all problems,” he said.
