Trifter

Ask any road warrior and they will tell you that no matter how experienced a traveler you may be jetlag will get you every time. Although; jetlag is more or less an inevitable consequence of traveling large distances that traverse multiple time zones, what is not inevitable is the degree to which it disrupts you functional capacity.

Here we are going to examine a few of the more time-proven and tested strategies in diminishing the negative effects of jetlag not only from the perspective of the road warrior but the casual traveler as well. The first question that needs an answer is “what causes jetlag?” and this is where we will start.

Internal Clocks

The body’s internal clock is primarily set by the cyclic production of the neurotransmitter melatonin. The brain’s melatonin production is very cyclic in nature and is heavily influenced by exposure to different light state environments (light and dark or day and night if you prefer). The critical factors here are:

Melatonin Levels – Increased levels of melatonin reduced the brain’s state of excitation which means your brain becomes less alert or “drowsy” (the conscious awareness of feeling sleepy) as a result.

Darkness – Exposure to darker environments; such as after sunset, causes the brain to synthesize and release increased amounts of melatonin.

Light – Exposure to brightly lit environments; such as during the hours of daylight, results in a decrease in melatonin production and release thereby creating the conscious awareness of being alert (wide awake).

Confusion - When one travels rapidly across time zones; which can be thought of as being regions that do not exhibit the same relative daily solar cycles of day and night, your internal melatonin production cycles are no longer appropriate for your new light/dark environment cycle.

Hung-Over Effect – As a result your “internal clock” becomes somewhat confusing to the conscious self and this is what produces the “hung-over” effect of jetlag.

Melatonin Production and Release Cycles Require Readjustment – Simply put your body will need to readjust your melatonin production and release cycle to more accurately and appropriately reflect your new environmental conditions. This readjustment will occur naturally over a 3 to 14 day period following your arrival.

Acclimatization – The process of adapting to your new environment’s light/dark, day/night cycles is known as acclimatization; something with which high-altitude mountain climbers are only too acutely aware of. While their specific altitude adaption is heavily linked to a thinning atmosphere and the subsequent reduction in the availability of atmospheric oxygen the basic concept of environmental adaption is the same.

Reducing the Impact of Jetlag

One age old way of dealing with jetlag and the insomnia that generally accompanies it is to gradually encourage your internal clock to be synchronous with the light and dark cycles at your destination.

Visibility – It has long been known that statistically speaking daylight departures and daylight arrivals tend to be more incident-free than at other times. This means that the aircrew, traffic control and terminal staff will have the best chance of getting it right or at the very least the greatest chances of averting a tragedy.

In short the better the visibility the greater are the chances of finding alternative solutions with greater survivability than would otherwise be the case. Morning departures and daylight landings also present the passengers their greatest chances of surviving the unthinkable.

Miracle on the Hudson – Consider the case of “The Miracle on the Hudson”. It would have been infinitely more difficult even for such a great flight crew to have pulled off this nigh on perfect water ditching landing at night, in foggy conditions, in total darkness or any other environment with markedly reduced visibility.

Direction Of Flight – Flights that travel from East to West generally take-off in the morning (AM). This means that departures will take place in good daylight most of the time while landings (arrivals) will also take place during daylight hours.

Sunglasses – On the third day after arriving at your destination you should wear sunglasses to make sure that no sunlight hits your eyes before 10:00 a.m. destination local time and messes up your light work.

Resetting Your Body’s Internal Clock

In recent years researchers have accumulated data that indicates that one extremely powerful way to moderate and even reset your internal melatonin production and release thereby modifying your internal clock to some extent is to begin implementing your counter-jetlag strategies some days prior to actual departure.

Blue Light – This is most easily done by influencing your body’s melatonin production and release cycle through the judicious use of a custom engineered light source to emit blue light of a specific and very tightly controlled wavelength, color and intensity.

Bright Lights – Scientists have known for some time that exposure to a bright light can modify your body’s production and release of melatonin thereby resetting your body’s internal clock.

Cumbersome Flops – Up until recently all available devices capable of serving this purpose have been rather cumbersome, very user unfriendly and not at all economical. It should therefore come as no great shock to discover that these devices were not at all well received by the general public, road warriors or any other traveler who may have benefitted from their use. The result is as no doubt you have already guessed these products were economical market-place flops.

Blue Light Emitting Diodes (LED Lights) – In more recent times however; newly developed powerful blue LED lights in 6 inch square plastic cases and only about one inch thick, have been produced to overcome the obstacles that this method of diminishing the effects of jetlag.

Portability – One of the beauties about this blue Led solution is quite obviously that it overcomes the portability issues previous products and technologies could not. In fact these devices are so small that manufacturers have already introduced products to the market that incorporate these tiny blue LED lights into sunglasses and sun visors.

Using Blue LEDs

The following product details, directions, tips and background information regarding the blue LED light jetlag reduction system are provided by Apollo Health the company that manufactures these blue LEDs. First of all let’s have a look at some background information regarding Apollo Health’s blue LED box:

• You don’t need to look directly at/into the blue light. It is perfectly safe to place the blue light box next to your computer while you work or even on the breakfast table while you eat.
• It does not emit any UV radiation what-so-ever
• It is not harmful to children or pets
• It will, however, bathe you in an electric blue light; which may make you look very much like a member of off-Broadway’s Blue Man Group. This will undoubtedly prove to be very entertaining to the kids (especially preschoolers).
• Apollo Health also claims that a single session with a blue LED light box can shift your body clock up to three time zones

How-To Use the Blue LED Light System

1. Traveling East
   • 3 Days before Departure – Three days before departure those traveling east should wake up one hour earlier than normal and sit near the blue light box for between 30 to 45 minutes
   • 2 Days before Departure – Two days before traveling those traveling east should wake up two hours before their normal wake time and sit near the blue LED light a second time
   • Day of Departure – On the day of departure you should wake up three hours earlier than your normal wake time and sit near the blue LED light for a third time
   • 3 Days after Arrival – In order to ensure that your eyes are not exposed to direct sunlight before 10:00 AM destination time wear sunglasses. Many buildings have lights that can influence you jetlag avoidance capacity so wear your sunglasses at all times for up to 14 days.
2. Traveling West
   • 2 Days before Departure – Use the blue LED light system in the evening between 7:00 and 8:00 PM for around 35 minutes
   • Day of Departure – Use the blue LED light system in the evening between 8:00 and 9:00 PM for around 35 minutes
   • On Arrival – Upon arrival use your sunglasses to protect yourself from exposure from afternoon and evening light
3. Returning Home
   • Ease your internal clock’s transition back to home time by using your light each morning for a few days after you return