Nothing spoils the fun of the long-awaited vacation than jet-lagged. The so-called syndrome that occurs when a sharp change of time zones: the body’s internal clock continue to go on as before, and he does not have time to readjust. Headaches, fatigue, apathy, sleep disturbances. But what about the people who do the flights on a daily basis?
Further, the first-person narrative of the correspondent of BBC, who conducted a thorough investigation.
Dawn sky of London was orange when I got on the plane. When six hours later I was in Montreal, Canada, it was still orange.
My body didn’t like it. We all live based on circadian rhythm, which determines the light to be active or doze off. Those who are constantly torn between different time zones, unfamiliar with this sucking feeling, when the clock body is totally confused and unable to adapt to rapid change cycle of day and night. As a result, of course, there is a jetlag — induced disturbance of circadian rhythm and for many of us it is a zombie state: irritability, moodiness, and profound fatigue.
“Our internal clock is not designed for 24 hours. Unfortunately, exposure to light at the wrong time of day leads to social sync your sleep schedule with internal clock,” says Erin Flynn-Evans, a member of the anti-fatigue NASA.
Blame the speed of the plane nothing; just the time zones are changing too fast.
And yet some people experience this severe shock every day: a professional flight crew, pilots and flight attendants. How they deal with jet lag — or they have immunity?
“Pilots suffer like all of us, but they are usually trained to manage their activities,” says Flynn-Evans. Most airlines have programs for risk management of fatigue to help pilots deal with jet lag — and the pilots can even say “tired”, if you feel too tired after the flight to safely carry out their work.
This training prepares pilots to find what best suits them, and stick procedures. “When I started to carry out flights over long distances, I asked for advice from the older captains, how to cope with jet lag, and almost all said no matter, you’ll find out what suits you better. And they were right”, says mark Vanhonacker, the pilot of British Airways.
Flynn-Evans gives advice to astronauts on how to deal with jet lag, and among them the recommendations that will be suitable for ordinary travelers. First, always keep in mind the direction of its movement, as it determines the amount of time you have for sleep, and hours of additives like artificial melatonin. Melatonin is a hormone that helps set the sleep cycle in the body; artificial melatonin is a popular alternative to using sleeping pills (although the arguments about whether it is effective in combating jet lag, has yet to be resolved).
Most people think that it is easier to adjust to time changes when flying West, not East. When neurologist Dr. Lawrence Recht studied seasonal statistics 19 major League baseball teams, we found that those who had to go to the East, generally, gave to one pass more than usual, in every game.
So if you have a flight in an easterly direction, it is a good idea to start getting up early a few days before the trip and include bright light, says Flynn-Evans. On the day of travel by plane and avoid light — wear sunglasses — to help internal clock. And when you arrive at the destination, the first few days sleeping with the curtains open and in good light.
If you are traveling West, chasing the Sun, go to bed later before a trip and more expose yourself to bright light in the evening, delaying the body clock. In flight, do not use points — get as much light as possible. “The lighting effects affect the internal clock, so if you are flying from Los Angeles to new York, watch need to put the time in Los Angeles and make sure that you are exposed to bright light in the new York morning, but not until 3 o’clock in the morning in Los Angeles. It’s not easy, because you need to change that belt that you are leaving, not the arriving”.
The long-haul pilot and an expert on flight safety at BALPA Steven Landers recommends drinking a lot of water on the plane is easy, but a reasonable number of times, and try to avoid caffeine or other stimulants.
Once at the destination, Vanhonacker, for example, uses a “rule 11 in the morning.” “If I can get into your hotel room or home by eleven in the morning, I sleep an hour or two. If later, then I won’t be able to lie down normally to sleep. But while I was awake on arrival or not, if the end of the day my chops, I can take a NAP — 20 minutes is enough. Alarm clock not forget”.
Charging also helps refreshes and improves sleep, when you finally drop your head on the pillow. Still, he tries to get into the green place on the first day, even if it is a Park next door. “I convinced myself that a short walk helps too, so I try to avoid pedestrian travelators at airports, especially after the flight”.
Coffee and exercise
Obviously, not all pilots follow his methods. Some pilots prefer to stay on my time zone (home) all the time — but this approach is not suitable for business travelers who need to sync their clock with the rhythm of the place at which they stop.
Betty Cutting — stewardess. She flies from the US to Europe at least once a week. Unlike pilots, she says, she and other crew members are not taught to deal with jet lag — so she just has developed its own methods of struggle. “I come to Europe in the morning and sleep a couple of hours, and then force myself to get up, even if my body wants to sleep,” she says.
To Wake up, she drinks a little coffee, listening to upbeat music and doing exercises in a hotel room. “You’d be surprised how dispersed a few sit-UPS, push-UPS and “tree” under Gee’Bee’s in the background; after that I’m ready to conquer the streets”. And if you’re lucky to find a swimming pool at the AIS, it will help to cope with fatigue and lethargy, is associated with a long journey in a small seat”.
Experts from the team of NASA anti fatigue say that on average, travellers need a day per time zone to adapt. Using the tricks and practices, Vanhonacker managed to reduce the time to about two hours per time zone, so in the case of a six-hour shift he comes back into operation in about three days.
It happens sometimes that we know we have to sleep, but I just can’t sleep. Vanhonacker says that in such a case, you can get a great experience exploring the cities at unusual times of the day. Among his favorite memories of Los Angeles — waiting on the tranquil beach while the cafe will not open the doors for Breakfast at five in the morning.
But the pilots are not robots, and they rarely adapt completely, says Landells. “A reasonable approach to the collection team can help, but if you’re a long-haul pilot, then you know that half days off between flights will feel awful. Personally, I seriously hate jetlag, but somehow live with it; I know some pilots that have switched from short to long flights and found that the long nights without sleep just not for them, so went back to short flights”.
The study, conducted by researchers at the Institute of space medicine of the DLR in Germany, they studied 12 pilots over the 11-hour trip between düsseldorf and Atlanta, Georgia. Jetlag so tired several pilots that the level of fatigue affected their performance.
Flying on the forums, some pilots admit that they are taking the popular sleeping pill Ambien, to adjust to the new time zone. It is not prohibited by the FAA, but there is a provision for time that must elapse after admission, before pilots can be permitted to fly. Ambien leaves the body through six or eight hours; Sonata, a drug that stays in the body approximately five hours.
Many experts and the flight crew does not use such drugs — including synthetic melatonin and adhere to natural methods of exposure to light. “Passengers often make the mistake of taking too much medicine or sleeping pills washed down with alcohol, says Cutting. — The results are unpredictable: you can start to undress. This passenger never remember, but always repents”.