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Jet lag can ruin the best-laid travel plans, leaving you feeling disoriented, tired, dehydrated, nauseous, irritable, forgetful, and confused. But with these five tips, you can prevent jet lag from ruining your next trip.
Modify Your Body’s Clock
To prevent your body’s timing from being disrupted by crossing time zones, you must start adjusting your body’s clock sooner rather than later. Before you fly, try to get your body on the same schedule as your destination time zone. For example, if you’re traveling to London from the Eastern United States, you’ll have a five-hour time difference to adjust. To get your body used to London time, start going to bed and waking up three hours later than what you’re used to in the week leading up to your flight. Gradually work your way up to the time difference each day. Your body needs to maintain its daily routine to prevent jet lag.
Avoid Heavy Food and Alcohol
Eating heavy foods and drinking alcohol during a flight can worsen jet lag. Heavy foods will only make you sleepy, and alcohol can dehydrate you and make you tired. Wait until your body has adjusted to the new time zone before indulging in heavy meals or alcohol.
Wear Yourself Out
Exercising or doing other physical activity before your flight can tire you out and help you get some sleep once you reach a different time zone. On long flights, taking a nap can also help you get the sleep you need once you arrive at your destination.
Stay Hydrated
Dehydration can quickly ruin a vacation or business trip, so drink plenty of water while traveling. Staying hydrated will help you feel refreshed and alert and prevent headaches, dry mouth, and other symptoms of dehydration.
Maintain a Sensible Schedule
Maintaining a sensible sleep schedule will help you avoid the full effects of jet lag as your body adjusts to the new time zone. If you fly overnight and lose a day, don’t stay up when you finally get a chance to go to bed. Getting plenty of rest will help your body adjust to the new time zone and prevent you from feeling the full effects of jet lag.
In conclusion, jet lag doesn’t have to ruin your next trip. Following these five expert tips can prevent jet lag from disrupting your sleep patterns and ruining your trip. So pack your bags, grab your passport, and get ready to fight jet lag like a pro.
