That's Fit

Travelling this summer? Anticipating jet lag? You might be surprised to hear that new research suggests that a great way to cure jet lag is by skipping meals

It's too late to try this trick for the holiday weekend, but some scientists at Harvard Medical School think that they may have discovered a "cure" for jet lag.

Normally, sleeping and eating times are dictated by our circadian rhythms, a kind of biological schedule that is at least partially triggered by daylight. When we travel by airplane to destinations that are far out of our time zone, it takes days or even over a week to catch up. Problem is, few vacations last much longer than that.

When the Harvard scientists worked with mice, however, they found that when food was scarce, a second sort of biological rhythm overrode circadian rhythms, which makes sense because if you sleep through dinner, you aren't going to survive long in the wild. It hasn't been tested in humans yet, but these researchers think that if you fast before your next long airplane ride -- at least 16 hours with no food -- you'll beat jet lag a lot faster than your fellow passengers. Worth a try? What do you think?

If you're heading from New York to Paris or San Francisco to Asia this summer, beyond the fact I'm jealous of you, there may be a way to avoid touring in a jet-lagged fog.

The Anti-Jet Lag Diet grew out of circadian rhythm studies by a biologist at Argonne National Laboratory years ago. It's been tested on the U.S. military, and thousands of others have followed it, including former President Reagan, the CIA, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and average travelers.

The Diet uses a pre-trip system of alternating moderate feasting and fasting starting four days out from your departure. The idea is to reschedule time-giving cues (sunrise/sunset, meals and rest/activity) to reset your body to the new time zone upon landing. Let's say you're departing for Paris on Sunday evening at 10:00 p.m. to arrive 10:00 a.m. Paris time, which is 4:00 a.m. New York time.

• Feast on the Thursday before your trip: Eat a high-protein breakfast and lunch and take a second helping. Dinner should be high in carbohydrates.
• Fast on Friday: Stick with light salads, soups, small slices of bread.
• Feast on Saturday, Fast on flight day (Sunday).

If you're doing a lot of traveling over this week between Christmas and New Year's, you might want to give what you put in your stomach some second thought. According to Healthday, traveling across time zones can mess with your natural body rhythms, and your stomach can get jet lag too. Eating when you're supposed to be sleeping or sleeping when you're supposed to be eating can upset your digestive system. Combine that with heavy holiday meals, and you've got a recipe for digestive disaster.

If you're traveling, try to eat regular, light meals and avoid things like alcohol and carbonated beverages. If you give it some time, your stomach will eventually catch up with the rest of you!

I recently took a flight across the country for a weekend away. The flight there was comfortable and no problem at all. The flight home was another story. I took a red eye from the west coast to the Midwest. The flight was 100% booked and most of my fellow passengers were 14-year old girls on their way home from a soccer tournament. Needless to say I didn't sleep a wink. After a sleepless night crossing three time zones I was a mess -- exhausted emotionally and physically. It occurred to me that I just can't handle travel like I used to. Maybe these tips from The Airplane Workout would have helped.

The workout highlights three areas of importance: nutrition and hydration, exercise and mobility, and how to stay energized.

• Before take-off: Avoid large, heavy meals ... opt for a low-fat meal with protein and complex carbs to keep you energized. Stay well-hydrated with water or other caffeine-free drinks. Wear light, layered, loose-fitting clothing. Get plenty of rest before travel and, if traveling over time zones, try adjusting yourself to the new time zone before leaving. Take a brisk walk around the terminal before boarding the plane. It's especially important to be active before boarding a very long flight.
  

There may be a prescription for jet-lag coming on the horizon, and from an unlikely source too. Viagra was shown to reduce or prevent time-change fatigue in recent tests on hamsters, which obviously opens a whole new potential way of dealing with the frustrations of long distance travel.

The active ingredient in Viagra, sildenafil, affects a messenger molecule that has to do with circadian rhythms and the body's internal clock -- higher doses of sildenafil means higher sensitivity to light differences and faster adjustment to changes.

The tests only included male hamsters, so the next step is "co-ed" testing and then on to mice. But maybe not that far off into the future the nasty side-effects of jet-lag will be curable with a little blue pill.

Being an airline pilot, or even a stewardess, carries with it a certain air of being in some exclusive club. They always walk by in groups wearing their official-looking uniforms and pulling their cute little suitcases -- you can't help but feel like they have a charmed and exotic lifestyle full of travel and adventure. But that package deal may come with more risks than expected as more and more airline crews are facing serious health troubles, including everything from psychotic disorders to menstrual cycle disruptions. What's the cause? Jet lag. Specifically jet lag experienced a few times too many -- the body just can't adjust fast enough or frequently enough and as a result different systems suffer, particularly in areas of mental health and hormones.

Whether you're a frequent flier for work or pleasure, something to think about!

I just got back from from Australia, and spent around 30 hours travelling, both on planes and through busy airports. I've also just developed a nasty cold. Coincidence? Maybe not, according to this. With all that recycled air, I'm not surprised that your risk of developing a cold onboard a plane is higher, but apparently it has more to do with what you touch than what you breath. Other causes of the flying cold? Pressure changes and a dry climate don't help, and I imagine the jet lag that comes from crossing multiple time zones doesn't help either.

So if you're flying soon, be sure to wash your hands, drink some water, eat healthfully and get some sleep!

Do you travel frequently? If so -- and your travels take you far -- you've probably encountered jet lag before. This phenomenon occurs as the body tries to continuously adjust its rhythms to changing times zones and activities.

What can you do about it? Not much, as the body can't cope with sudden changes in time zones like a win-up clock. The only way to naturally beat jet lag is to build in time before and time after a long flight to allow your body to adjust to its new expectations.

Some common symptoms of jet lag to watch out for include:

* Insomnia at night
* Feeling sleepy during the day
* Loss of appetite
* Upset stomach
* Moodiness
* Inability to concentrate or focus

Are you a road-weary business traveler? If so, do you travel between time zones frequently, stirring up your body's internal clock and metabolism? If so, a study recently involving rats -- of course -- resulted in a report that a six-hour shift in time schedule once a week -- for up to eight weeks -- brings on earlier death in elderly rats, but not effect was found on younger rats.

The drastic effects seen in rat morbidity was pinpointed to airline crews and other jobs that require workers to regularly cross time zones in the process of doing their jobs. Heck, this could apply to busy executives and CEOs as well I would think, as those are some of the most-traveled people in the world.

Although it's not exactly clear why the older rats died early deaths when subjected to jet lag, one of the researchers did state that sleep deprivation or disruption of the immune system may have been to blame.

Jet lag is that awful feeling when you fly across different time zones and you find that you're sleepy when you're supposed to be awake and wired when it's time for bed.

As someone who used to do a lot of coast-to-coast traveling, I was often frustrated with jet lag. What can be done?