Sleep problems: Dealing with jet lag
Why do you get jet lag?
You may get jet lag when you fly across one or more time zones. This happens when you fly east to west or west to east. When you fly north to south or south to north, you don't cross time zones, so you don't get jet lag.
Crossing time zones disrupts your body's "biological clock," or 24-hour rhythms (circadian rhythms). You have symptoms because your biological clock has not adjusted to the new time zone. Your body thinks that you're still in your old time zone.
For example, if you fly from Chicago to Rome, you cross seven time zones. This means that Rome is 7 hours ahead of Chicago. When you land in Rome at 6:00 in the morning, your body thinks it's still in Chicago at 11:00 the previous night. Your body wants to sleep, but in Rome the day is just starting.
Other things besides your wake/sleep cycle are affected. You may not be hungry at dinnertime in Rome, but you may be very hungry in the middle of the day. Your bowel movements may be on a different schedule than normal.
As your body adjusts to the time change, the symptoms go away.
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| Author: | Jeannette Curtis | Last Updated: January 4, 2010 |
| Medical Review: | E. Gregory Thompson, MD - Internal Medicine Jan Ulfberg, MD, PhD - Sleep Disorders | |
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