A sleep
researcher employed by British Airways has devised a method to help cure the most annoying of holiday afflictions: jet
lag.
I’ve been told for many years to drink plenty of fluids to stave off jet lag and as a result, have never
suffered too badly upon landing. Recently, a friend who is an engineer for Boeing informed me that the major cause of
jet lag is your brain working overtime to drown out the constant hum of the aircraft. He recommends the best earplugs
money can buy. I also subscribe to this theory.
Chris Idzikowski, the director of the Edinburgh Sleep
Center, has yet another solution, and this one
is based upon scientific fact. Apparently the brain’s biological clock has a direct feed to the light receptors in your
eyes. Jet lag is therefore the result of arrhythmic exposure to light. Experiencing daylight when your biological
clock is telling your body it should be dark — or vice versa — is what sets off that insomnia, exhaustion, and
disorientation.
The solution is therefore very simple — regulate your exposure to light. British Airways
has a nifty "Jet Lag Advisor" on its
site based upon Idzikowski’s research. Travelers plug in their normal wake time, as well as the current time in their
departure and arrival cities. The Jet Lag Advisor then calculates the hours you should seek and avoid light.
Hmmm … seems to make sense to me. Next time I fly I’m bringing water, ear plugs, and a blindfold. Thanks
British Air! Now about those cramped seats which prevent me from sleeping …