Food Tips For Fighting Jet Lag

Food Tips for Fighting Jet Lag

Shift your bedtime by an hour or two in the right direction starting three days before your trip. If you are traveling east, move your bedtime earlier, and if you are traveling west, do the opposite.

Start resetting your body clock before you fly

Shift your bedtime by an hour or two in the right direction starting three days before your trip. If you are traveling east, move your bedtime earlier, and if you are traveling west, do the opposite.

Try a Jet Lag Calculator

British Airways offers a Jet lag Advisor calculator that lets you enter the time you normally wake up, the time difference between home, and where you're flying and then generates tips on how to minimize jet lag. 

Adapt to your new time zone

The minute you step into the airplane cabin, adopt the hour of the time zone you're traveling to. Reset your watch and start to think according to the new time zone.

Drink water

Drink plenty of water before, during, and after your flight to keep your bodyhydrated. Experts recommend that you drink at least two 8-ounce glasses just before departure and one 8-ounce glass every hour while in the air.

Avoid alcohol

Avoid drinking alcohol, as well as ingesting other depressants or other motion-sickness drugs, before, and during your flight, as these tend to make you drowsy and mess with your body's ability to reset to a new sleeping pattern.

Avoid Caffeine

The impulse to reach for a coffee or chug a Red Bull when fighting jet lag may seem irresistible, but it will actually prolong that dreaded jet lag feeling. It is recommended to avoid caffeine for up to 12 hours before your flight as caffeine may keep you awake in the present but will ultimately disrupt your sleep cycles. 

Eat Away Jet Lag

The Argonne Anti-Jet-Lag Diet is said to help travelers avoid jet lag by changing their diets four days leading up to an international trip. The diet works by alternating days of high protein and carb-heavy meals (otherwise known as feasting days) with light fasting days of salads and soups; while avoiding caffeine and alcohol before a flight.

Eat light

Eat more lightly than you are accustomed to before, during, and after your flight, as high-fat and high-carb foods can make it harder to sleep.

Take short naps

It is OK to take a daytime nap after arrival, but keep it to 30 minutes or less so it won't disrupt your nighttime sleep.

Move around

Taking a walk after landing might not only re-energize your body and wake up your muscles after a long flight, but a sunny day will also give your body a dose of the best all-natural energy: sunlight.

Take a hot bath

A bath can ease sore muscles from travel and help you relax and wind down. The drop in your body temperature when you get out of a bath may also make you sleepy.

Minimize sleep distractions

Pack an eye mask and earplugs, which might help you sleep on the plane and at the arrival destination. Also try to eliminate distractions in your room at bedtime, such as light shining in through a window.

Consider medication

Though it usually is not necessary to get treatment for jet lag, if you are a frequent flier and the above tips don't seem to help, you may consider talking to your doctor about possible temporary medications, such as melatonin, to help you keep up with your normal sleeping pattern.

Look for Stopovers

A great way to fight jet lag is to give your body time to adapt to the time zone changes by building in a stopover in your flight itinerary. If you have the time, a stopover is not only a great solution to fighting fatigue but will also shave dollars off your airfare and let you discover a new destination and enjoy some delicious airport restaurants around the world!

Opt for Overnight Flights

Jet lag is caused by a disruption in the body's schedule and overnight flights offer a way to keep your circadian rhythms in sync by allowing you to have dinner, sleep on the plane and arrive at your destination the next morning or afternoon.