Talk:Jet lag
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Article is very poorly written. I would rewrite it myself but i lack necessarily writing skills. First about the acupuncture paragraph-> http://skepdic.com/acupunc.html
Second, good information can be found here about how cicardian rhytm and homeostatic system works. http://www.supermemo.com/articles/sleep.htm
[edit] Fake
This whole thing has been proven as fake... even travelling vertically without crossing time zones, experiments have shown people feel the same thing. The real reason is the pressurised cabins.
Fake? Highly doubtful. Yes, people traveling from north to south do feel something similar like I did when flying from Guam to Sydney (where there is only one time zone difference), but they're not the same thing. There is a larger "recovery" time flying west to east than east to west. Again, I live in Guam and have flown to the States and back. To say it's fake is a bit pretentious,especially if you've never travelled great distances or if you don't know anyone who hasJlujan69 22:09, 14 November 2006 (UTC)
Emm fake you say, hmm interesting, i guess all my studys on the subject have been a total waste of my time in that case. i guess all the psychologists where just wasting there time, ill just let them know shall i? :+s -- user:maestrosync cannot be bothered logging in...
[edit] Neutrality regarding Treatments
"Other remedies have not been proven to be safe or effective." I dispute the neutrality of that statement. There are tens of thousands of licensed Doctors around the nation prescribing all kinds of treatments for the treatment of jet lag, so there is no unbiased and neutral way to arbitrarily dispel them all. Maybe you could get away with quoting someone, including the NIH. But you can't academically just say that melatonin may show promise, but other things have not been proven to be safe or effective. Besides which, "proof" is a subjective word.Mrcolj 18:01, May 15, 2005 (UTC)
[edit] Please, give references or delete:
There is no firm agreement as to which direction of travel is worse. Some believe that travelling east is worse as it "accelerates" the passage through various time zones (a night might only last 3 hours when flying east), and because the symptoms of travelling west, such as waking earlier in the morning, can be easier to integrate with ordinary life. Others counter that the impact is worse when one travels away from one's "habitual" time zone, and is minimised when returning to it.Jclerman 16:45, 25 October 2005 (UTC)
[edit] Prevention and recovery
As a frequent traveler who spends half his life in the air, hopping timezones, I can, from my own experience, say that - and I have tried a lot - the only thing that really helps is good sleep aboard and lots to drink. Melatonin also had some sort of effect, however neglegible.
In either way, I cannot see how that statement compromises the neutrality of the article? You work for a pharmacy company?
[edit] Jet Lag - What's it All About
The subject of "jet lag" may seem trivial to many travelers and some biology researchers. There is, however, a large commuity of researchers (chronobiology )trying to understand the mechanisms involved in similar effects and other circandian effects. There are major issues on job performance of shift workers and others. However, jet lag is not a trivial effect. As a major program manager for an American East Coast based corporation and a Japanese corporation, I made over 50+ trips to Japan (exact travel was from JFK or EWR to Narita). I suffered from jet lag and like many people who report on it, I always found that it was minimized when traveling west and greatly increased in the eastboaund travel. Specifically, on a trip to Japan I would recover from jet lag within two days, however, one the return trip I would have jet lag effects for up to ten days. I made many observations, as a scientist, and reviewed the present literature that I cold find.
I have also traveled in the north-south direction and noticed no effects of jet lag, when the time zone shifts were +/- 1 hours. I have flown from NYC to Panama City, Pamana and even though the trip is a long one (8+ hours) there were no jet lag effects.
There have been many, well though out experiements, on circandian effects and many effects have been documented in peer-reviewed journals. Since there has been such study it is clear that there is some validity to the "jet lag" effect. Rather complex experiments have been conducted in which subjects, people, have been placed in experimetal chambers with control over light and dark and then their "free running" biorhythms have been recorded. There are many results and they are not all consistent. I view this not as a failing of the researchers, but a lack of understanding of all the variables that are involved in the subject.
It it clear from the research conducted that there are several (many bio-rhythms) that are effecting our bodily functions on a daily basis. Feeding cycles, light-dark cycles, etc. all are active and involved in the daily functions of the human.
So at this point, let me state that this is a very complex subject, varies in intensity with various individuals and biological organisms, and is not an easy subject to analyse.
Thus let me give you my personal exsperience. I will also note that I have talked with many persons that have been involved in international work and many - the majority - have found similar effects as I did. I suffered from jet lag. No one can deny my disturbed sleep cycles and the time necessary to adjust to the new cycles. This is my experience and as a professional scientist - PhD in theoretical physics - I was careful to note the conditions that induced the jet lag.
The flights to Japan left JFK and/or EWR at about 1300 local time and lasted 14 hours in the air. The standard procedure on these flights was to close the windows, serve a dinner and then let the passageners either sleep, read, or watch movies for most of the flight. The cabin was at a very low light level. After the long flight the plane landed in Narita at about 1600 hours local time and everyone then went through the deboarding, customs, immigration ritual. We then traveled by first class train to our destination hotel. We had dinner and then went to sleep, I had about one dozen engineers with me on each trip and they all have some degree of jet lag. It was a common subject each morning at breakfast. With respect to me, I recovered from jet lag and was fully syn-ed with local time within three days. The same was true with respect to my engineering staff.
On the return flight, the flight left Narita at about 1700 hours and landed in EWR or JFK at about 1600 hours local time, the next day. I use the term next day, in the following sense. On the westbound flights to Japan, then sun made very little relative motion during the flight. On the return trip, the night approached quickly and then day break and finally landing in the afternoon. I pose this statement in the following manner, so that one can think of the effect on one's biology. Westbound the day is extended and eastbound the day is shortened.
I also noticed that when we experienced these flights on or near weekends, I would return home and I love to work in the garden for relaxation. The bright skies essentially eliminated my jet lag, except that after the weekend ended and I returned to indoor professional work, the jet lag came back and took a long time to resolve it itself. Therefore, from my own experiences I agree with many researchers that the light (day-night effect) is a powerful one, but it is not the only factor involved. Something else is involved. We are indeed complex biological creatures.
It was during one of the flights to Japan that I began to develop a simplistic model of the "jet lag" effect. I drew a diagram of the sun, moon and earth on a piece of paper and noted the jet's path and the motion of the celestial bodies I just mentioned.
On the westbound flight, the flight lifted into the air and the earth revolved below it. The sun and the moon essentially did not move at all. When the plane landed 14 hours later, the motion of the three bodies was equivalent to the motion of about 3 hours when one is one stationary on land. Note the 3 day - 3v hour correlation.
On the eastbound flight, the sample diagram yielded the fact the the plane lifted into the air and circled the earth rather rapidly. The 14 hour flight was equivalent to a 24+ hour day on the surface of the earth.
Now this may seem unimportant to many, but I thought back on my course work in linear system analysis and the effects of impulse and "zero" function analysis. We are very complex creatures, so the easiest model to build is the linear systems model. It is a standard analysis technique. The model yields the following effect - for a "null" input, the output of a linear system is "null" and quickly sycnhs with the following periodic input, however, for the "impulse" input, the output shows a long time disturbance, until it finally settles into its periodic rhythm. I won't bore anyone with Fourier tramsforms.
It should be pointed out that there are many bilogical, but not all biological functions that are related to the relative motion of the earth, moon and sun. One has to really consider the motion of the center of gravity of the bodies. For example, the ocean's tides create tidal flows that carry nutrients to many forms of life, such as clams, mussels, oysters, coral, etc. and they synch themselves to the tidal flows, for feeding purposes. The tidal flows are determined by the motion of the earth, moon and sun.
Now before anyone jumps to the conslusion that I am proposing that we are all "lunatics", with our bio-rhythms controlled by the moon, let me point out that we may carry the genetic code of the earliest life forms and partially synch ourselves to the celestial bodies. I am not necessarily implying the gravitonal effect of these bodies, but there may be cycles in the the magnetic and electric fields of the earth, induced by the motion of the celestial bodies.
Let me give you an example, as I experienced ocean sailor and user of SSB (single side band radio commuication) the ionosphere changes with the rotation of the earth and radio waves reflect differently off the ionosphere in day vs. night. The U.S. National Weather Service that broadcasts weather reports to the marine community, (ships, ports and any other interested users) states the best daytime and the best night time frequencies to use.
Thus at this point let me summarize as follows. I have for many years suffered from the effects of jet lag, the westbound effect is much less than the eastbound efffect, many of the other professionals that had similar travel, that I have discussed this with have also reported the same effect to me, The "eastbound-westbound" effect. They have also reported the lack of the north-south jet lag effect. Such a model is consistent with the relative motion of the major three celestial bodies that affect our lives. I am not implying that gravity, and its minor oscillations with the motion of three bodies is the cause of "jet lag". However, I am stating that "jet lag" is a natural consequence of a mathematical linear systems analysis of the effect. The motion of the three bodies may effect us through a variety of ways and they need to be idetified and carefully examined.
A final thought, space travel will be dependent upon our understanding of these effects. I have not be able to access all of NASA's reports or results, but we are fully aware that long term weightness can induce non-reversible bone/calcium loss. That is why astronauts have certain exercise programs. They also have major effects on their sleep-wake patterns and, I think that it would be very helpful to have access to this information for analysis by others beside the "space-agency".
There is a lot of great physics questions here and, as a professional scientist, I eagerly seek information as to the current understanding of this effect - "jet lag".--Jtclemens 18:20, 6 January 2006 (UTC)
Does anyone registered wanna tag it? You're absolutely right, this article sticks in my craw. Try flying to Hawaii for college--jet lag can't stand up to it :)
[edit] Prevention works for me
My initial experience with jet-lag between Europe and Japan were like 2-3 day nasty hangovers. I tried the Melatonin, with minor effects - your mileage may vary. Now, with over 25 trips behind me, some of them from Japan to the U.S., I found what works for me and experience only very mild symptoms, like a more pronounced weak afternoon and a need for an early evening bedtime. My traveling regimen: 1. lots of hydration: water, green tea, juices (which I don't like too much) at least a cup an hour, better two, but no coffee and no alcohol at all (would be dehydrating), 2. sleep at least 4h on board (not that comfy in economy, but it helps), 3. back on the ground, drink some more. The downside: I must ask for an aisle seat because I need the restroom more often. Bernd in Japan 09:13, 2 March 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Jet lag and Daylight Saving Time
Can daylight saving changes be considered jet lag-like due to the fact that in essence, it is like moving into a different time zone? User:Crd721
- To the extent that the 1 hr change affects some individuals, yes. It has been claimed that traffic accidents increase on the switch days. I can't recall the authors & title of the book at this time. It was published in the early 1980s. Jclerman 07:22, 13 March 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Description of Jet Lag needed
There are currently sections on Causation and Prevention/Recovery but nothing written on what Jet Lag actually is.
So what is it? Everything I can write on the issue will have no references or sources. MrHen 00:10, 11 May 2006 (UTC)
Jet Lag is simply dehydration caused by the Cabin Air which is 10 times drier than that of the world's driest deserts due to the air at altitude having little to no moisture. 50% of the air inhaled is from the outside, whilst the other 50% is recirculated air from the cabin. As a result, your skin releases moisture which almost immediately evaporates. You also loose a large amount of fluid from exhaling, which after only 1 1/2 to 2 hours, will cause the body to start dehydrating if that fluid is not replenished. As a First Officer with United based out of Tokyo doing flights both to the US and other ports in Asia, United and virtually all other airlines have instructed their Flight Crews to combat Jet Lag (And if travelling over time zones, combat the infamous Internal Clock Issue) by doing the following two things. One, drink at least 35-40 ounces of water (Not sodas or alcohol which will speed the process up) per hour even if you don't feel thirsty. Second, to adjust to the new time zone, you must remain awake for at least 90% of your flight. This guarantees little to no interruption to the intake of water, and it also helps the body adjust. Upon arrival at your destination, go straight to the hotel and sleep for exactly two hours. Once the two hours are complete, wake up and remain awake and active for the remainder of the day. This allows the body to adjust that day to the time zone you are in, regardless of how far ahead or behind you are from what you were orginally in.
It's unfortunate that most people have been led to believe that Jet Lag is related solely to the time zone issue, but in reality you can receive it even on a flight fron NYC to Miami if you dont drink any fluid during the flight.
Jet lag is not solely a time zone issue, as you pointed out, but time zone changes to play a part however minor. The next time I travel to the CONUS, I'll follow your remedy regarding the intake of fluids. As far as remaining awake for 90 percent of the flight, what about connections and layovers? Do I account for those periods of time as well?Jlujan69 22:17, 14 November 2006 (UTC)
[edit] going without sleep
Doesn't jet lag also refer (in common parlance anyway) to the effects of lack of sleep/poor sleep while travelling somewhere? Or that it gets mixed into it... For example, if you fly from LA to London and get little if any sleep, seperate from just the time zone thing, there is going to be a lot of fatigue, disorientation, and other symptoms of going without sleep. So I would like to suggest that a mention of this effect (either to contrast it with 'real' jetlag, or talk about what it adds to the mixture). 169.233.20.230 01:13, 31 May 2006 (UTC)
[edit] description and everything else
Don't innovate. Stick to the MeSH definition:
Jet Lag Syndrome: A chronobiologic disorder resulting from rapid travel across a number of time zones, characterized by insomnia or hypersomnolence, fatigue, behavioral symptoms, headaches, and gastrointestinal disturbances. (From Cooper, Sleep, 1994, pp593-8) Year introduced: 2000
MeSH can be found as part of PubMed. Jclerman 01:24, 31 May 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Melatonin and Jet Lag
In your text, it says... "Recent research shows that the pineal hormone melatonin may reduce the effects of jet lag. Studies have not identified side effects from such short-term use. [1] Many products on the market claim to treat the effects of jet lag. Since the experience of jet lag varies among different individuals, it is difficult to assess the efficacy of any single remedy....."
Indeed, melatonin may well reduce the effects of jet lag through its effects on the circadian system. However, recent studies have shown that it can significantly affect immune status - possibly in adverse ways in people with autoimmune disorders. I think it was respiratory illnesses that were of most concern - such as patients with asthma. This would be an adverse side effect! In North America melatonin is available over the counter and this became such a serious issue that in Canada, sale was temporarily suspended. There are still travel advisory statements especially wrt patients with autoimmune disorders that can be easily accessed through the web and other sites. Perhaps less of an issue in Europe, where it's hormone status results in prescription instead of OTC. 24.137.200.118 02:28, 7 October 2006 (UTC)
