10 JET LAG BUSTERS!
From drinking coffee outside to switching to local time on landing – just some of the expert advice from airline crew in how to avoid that drowsy feeling on your well-earned break
There are all kinds of theories about how to complete a long-haul flight without feeling drained. It’s an occupational hazard for cabin crew and here’s their tried and tested tips.
Go local – fast
Change your watch to the time in your destination as soon as you land (most phones automatically do so). Living on local time is easier when you fly west as you’ll normally arrive closer to bed-time. Fly east and you may have a full day to get through before bed. ‘It’s why cabin crew say west is best, east is a beast,’ says Jennie Jordan, author of Flying High, a book about flight attendant life.
Limit your naps
A quick nap after arrival is fine, preferably in the morning because it won’t affect your body clock as much as a long afternoon snooze – and is less likely to stop you sleeping at night. But it’s best to stay up to your normal bed time. Planning a first-day activity, even if it’s just a restaurant for an early dinner, can take your mind off sleep.
Booze is bad news
Free drinks may be tempting, but alcohol has more effect at 35,000 feet as cabin pressure cuts oxygen levels in the blood. Drink too much and hangovers can kick in shortly after landing, further confusing body clocks that associate sore heads with early mornings. Dehydration also creates fatigue and compounds jet lag.
Drink in that fresh air
Don’t drink your coffee/tea indoors on your first morning away. Take a cup out into a garden or hotel pool or even into the street so you get some fresh air and feel daylight on your skin as early as possible. It helps your subconscious record that it’s morning and eases you into the new time zone.
Go for a stroll
Scientists say dog owners tend to sleep well as they go for short walks in the evening, stretching muscles and reminding the subconscious that darkness has fallen. So take a twilight stroll on holiday. And never go straight from dinner to bed, which may add indigestion to jet lag.
Sleeping pill rules
Three nights of sleeping pills are enough: over-thecounter, prescription or herbal pills can help you sleep in a new time zone, but Dr Ben MacFarlane, author of Holiday SOS: The Life-Saving Adventures Of A Travelling Doctor, warns against packing too many. ‘After the third night you should be able to sleep naturally,’ he says. ‘Get into the habit of taking medication on holiday and you might struggle to break the cycle at home.’
Avoid disturbances
Don’t risk being woken when you do nod off in a hotel for a quick midday nap. Most cabin crew will turn mobiles to silent and hang up ‘Do Not Disturb’ signs.
Embrace background noise
Experts say it pays to embrace low levels of noise on planes and at hotels. Tell your brain it’s okay to be surrounded by a low hum of activity and you’re more likely to sleep. White noise, including recordings of log fires, can also soften sounds that might otherwise wake us.
Don’t brazen it out
Some swear by staying on Irish time while away, saying it makes it easier to ‘click back’ when they return home. Critics believe it’s only likely to work for business travellers away for one or two nights.
Ignore weird tips
DJ Calvin Harris recently said eating raw egg yokes on flights stops him getting jet lag. When flying long haul he says he puts six eggs in his cabin bag then cracks them and eats the yokes at his (first class) seat. Does this work? Doubtful — but each to his or her own.