Combat Jetlag

With our ‘land downunder’ being such a long flight away from the majority of the world, Jet Lag is an issue for most Australian travelling overseas. So we’ve done some research, and thrown in a little bit of our own experience to provide you with some tips to combat Jet Lag and all its horrible symptoms.
Jet Lag: What is it? Put simply Jet Lag is a sleep disorder caused by the body’s biological clock not being aligned with the local time. But if you've ever experienced it, you know it’s more than just not being able to sleep at night and being irritable during day time... long uncomfortable flights, dehydration caused by dry cabin air, change of diet (think salty and fatty airplane foods), combined with travelling across time zones throws your whole body ‘out of whack’ and feeling terrible.

Combat Jet Lag: Pre-take off

• If you can, try to arrange a stopover for a night or two to break the trip up.


• Book your accommodation at your destination for at least the first few nights. The last thing you’ll be wanting to do after a long flight is trying to find a bed to sleep in.


• If you have an important event or meeting that you are travelling to, plan to arrive a few days earlier to allow your body to settle in.


• A few days prior to take off you can start adapting to your new time schedule. No more Jet Lag is a handy acupressure tool that can help with this.


• If time permits fitting in some cardio exercise the day of your departure will help your system cope better.


• Consider purchasing some herbal sleeping tablets (available at chemists and health food stores) and some healthy snacks for your flight.


• Consider packing some comfort (pillow, sleep mask etc) items for the flight.


• If you are prone to ear aches due to the change in cabin pressures, pack some Flitemates and chewing gum.

Combat Jet Lag: In-flight

• Set your watch to the new time as you begin the trip.


• Try to avoid sleeping at times that wouldn't be appropriate for sleep at your destination.
  Vice versa, and possibly with the help of herbal sleeping tablets, try and sleep at times appropriate for sleep at your destination.


• While airlines provide you with pillows, blankets and often also eye masks, you may find it more comfortable and easier to get some sleep by bringing your own more comfortable options. The gogogear team swears by this pashmina and/or the Roman Palm 1 Sleeping Bag for inflight comfort.


• Make the most of any temporary stopovers by walking around and getting the blood circulating.


• Drink plenty of water.


• Avoid drinking excessive alcohol and coffee as they won’t help with the dehydration issue.


• Having said that a glass or so of alcohol may help you relax into sleeping.


• It’s easy to over eat on long haul flights because of boredom. But over eating can make you feel very uncomfortable when you have to sit in one position for hours. Remember you only need as many calories as a bed ridden person... so be conscious of this and try and eat only as much as you really feel like. You might also want to consider opting for the lighter meal choices the airlines offer when you book your ticket.


• DVT (Deep Vein Thrombosis) deserves its own segment, but just to touch on it, you should: take an aspirin or two in flight to keep the blood thin; use compression stockings or compression socks (this will also keep your legs from swelling), walk around as much as possible.

Combat Jet Lag: On Arrival

• Taking a hot shower and a ten minute power nap on arrival will make you feel a million dollars.


• Use No More Jet lag to help your body clock adjust to the new time zone.


• You may find it helpful to continue taking the herbal sleep tablets at bedtime for the first few nights.


• If you exercise regularly at home, continue to do so at your destination. It will help with keeping your whole system in rhythm.


• Try to be gentle with your body for the first couple of days by not planning to do too much.


• You might be swollen for the first couple of days due to dehydration and air cabin pressure so be sure you keep drinking copious amounts of water and eating good foods with plenty of fibre. Taking a good multivitamin daily isn’t a bad idea either!