FLY WELL
BEAT JET LAG WITH NINA MCGRATH, GROUP SAFETY MANAGER – FATIGUE RISK MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS, CATHAY PACIFIC
Q What is jet lag?
A Jet lag is a bunch of symptoms we get because our body clock is out of sync with local time. In aviation we say ‘west is best’, because if you
fly to the west, you acclimatise by one and a
half hours a day on average, but it’s only one
hour per day if you fly east.
Q What can you do to adapt to your new time quicker?
A You need to tell your body clock what time it is. Sunlight is the most effective way of doing
this: if you maximise daylight, that sends the right message to your body – all the more if you combine that with some light exercise. It’s better to have lunch when it’s lunchtime, and not to go to bed until bedtime, although it’s OK to have a short nap if you feel you are not going to make it. Going to bed when it’s dark will also help.
Q What can you do to maximise sleep at night?
A Good sleep hygiene applies no matter the time zone. Avoid caffeine, nicotine and alcohol,
particularly in the afternoon or evening. Avoid the blue light from mobile devices. This tells your brain it’s daytime – so use the night function on your phone. Make a nice sleep environment where you can control your comfort, light, noise and temperature.
Q What if you wake up and can’t get back to sleep?
A Try a meditation app like Calm, or listen to an audiobook or a podcast, but nothing too exciting – just something to stop your brain calculating how much time there is before you need to get up.
國泰航空的集團安全(疲勞風險管理系統)經理 NINA MCGRATH教你如何克服時差
問:什麼是時差？
答:時差是指我們的生理時鐘與當地時間不同步，因而引發一連串現象。航空界有句話說「向西邊飛最好」，因為如果你的旅程是朝向西面，你平均每天會有一個半小時適應時差，但若然是向東邊飛，你每天便只有一個小時調節。
問:如何可以更快適應新時區？
答:你要讓自己的生理時鐘知道現在是什麼時間。陽光就是向身體報時的最有效方法：盡量多曬太陽，讓身體更準確掌握當地時間，如能配合輕量運動，效果更佳。此外，你亦應維持正常的作息時間，如在當地中午時份吃午餐，待到晚上才就寢。如果你實在難敵睡意，小睡片刻亦無妨。此外，天黑後才上床睡覺亦有幫助。
問:如何於夜間盡量獲得充足的睡眠？
答:無論你身處任何時區，要注意良好的睡眠養生之道。避免於午後和晚間攝取咖啡因、尼古丁和酒精。另外，藍光會讓大腦以為現在是白晝，因此應避免在晚上使用會發出藍光的電子產品，並將手機設定為夜間模式。最後是營造良好的睡眠環境，將室內調節至最舒適的光線、聲浪及溫度，讓自己感到最舒服。
問:如果在半夜醒來後無法再入睡，可以怎麼做？
答:可以試試Calm這類冥想應用程式，或者收聽有聲書或播客節目，內容只要不過於刺激便可。簡單來說，就是任何能令心情放鬆的事，讓大腦停止計算還有多少時間便要起床。
請於娛樂系統收聽列表(播客節目) 收聽「Calm's Sleep Stories」