There are a number of ways to treat jet lag, apart from simply waiting it out. While drug options are available, experts say behavioral adjustments are typically the best remedy.
Lifestyle and Behavioral Changes That Can Help With Jet Lag
First of all, you’ll want to adapt your old routines to your new time zone. “As soon as you get on the plane, get in the mindset that you’re on your destination’s time zone,” Grandner says. “Change your watch right away and use the destination time to plan when you’re eating, when you’re sleeping, and when you’re working.”
In other words, act like you’re already fully acclimated to that new time zone and you’re back on your typical schedule. If you normally go to bed at 11 and get up at 7, and you normally eat meals at specific times of the day, follow that schedule in your new time zone.
It won’t be easy at first — you likely won’t be tired or hungry at the right times — but it will help push your internal clocks in the right direction, he says.
If you want to take a more proactive approach, experts recommend using bright light exposure to help reset your body’s clocks. “The best way to fix this is properly timed light exposure, which can accelerate the resynchronization,” says Jamie Zeitzer, PhD, a professor and the codirector of the center for sleep and circadian sciencesat Stanford University in California.
According to research, if you’ve traveled west, you’ll want plenty of bright-light exposure (such as natural outdoor light or very bright indoor light) later in the day. You’ll also want to avoid these in the early morning hours (such as earlier than the sun is naturally out). That’s because your body’s internal clocks think it’s later than it really is, and you’re trying to drag it earlier.
If you’ve traveled east, you’ll want to do the opposite: Get plenty of morning bright-light exposure and avoid it later in the day. (Wearing dark sunglasses outdoors, and “blue blockers” indoors, can help you avoid light at the wrong times of day.)
The ideal timing for light exposure or avoidance is tricky, Burgess says. It depends on the size of the time difference and your usual sleep-wake schedule. But the American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends an online calculator called Jet Lag Rooster. Put in your travel details and the tool will tell you the ideal times to seek and avoid light.
Finally, Grandner says, “Try not to nap for more than 20 minutes, especially if your nap time corresponds with when you’d go to bed in your original time zone.”
Medication Options
Melatonin supplements can in some cases encourage your clocks to adjust more quickly. But Zeitzer says using light exposure to reset your clocks is “around 10-fold more potent.”
The Jet Lag Rooster calculator has a “use melatonin” option that can be useful. But Grandner offers a general rule of thumb: “Take a small dose, 0.5 to 3 mg, two to four hours before bed.”
Recent research does suggest that many Americans misuse melatonin; so if you choose to use it, avoid common mistakes like taking too much.
Prescription sleep aids — such as hypnotics like zolpidem (Ambien) — can help you get to sleep at the appropriate time at your destination. But research has also found that these drugs sometimes interfere with jet lag adjustment; and they come with risk of serious side effects and complications, like addiction. Grandner says most people don’t need these drugs to manage jet lag.
