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Most long distance travellers suffer from jet lag, but a new study noticed that young children do not. By studying the behavioural differences between travelling children and travelling adults, they identified why the children seem immune to jet lag. Further testing showed that if adults adopted a similar behavioural pattern during the travel process, they didn’t suffer from jet lag either.

(PRWEB) August 24, 2005 -- Long distance travelers have battled with jet lag ever since long distance air travel started. Positive enthusiastic and normally successful business people prepare for an important meeting for a week, fly to meet with their prospect or client, and completely fail to impress. Tourists save and plan for their much deserved holiday, but when they get there they sleep through the day until late and are then wide awake until after breakfast when they waste another day trying to recover.

That may be all a thing of the past. A jet lag study just completed found that very few children suffered from jet lag, and focused on the behavioral differences between adults and children who were traveling long distances, to identify why.

Jet lag is caused by a mismatch between the inner body clock associated with the circadian rhythm, and the local time. Over the years many products have been developed, and ideas tested, with a view to reducing the disastrous effects of jet lag. For most people these have had little or no positive impact on the problem.

The results of this study, released today, identify four factors that must be consistent to reset the body’s internal clock to a new time zone. If all four are not in balance the result is jet lag. It is like the body has four different pocket watches all in the same pocket. Each time it reaches into the pocket it pulls out a different watch. This appears to be the reason that jet lag control techniques and products have had such little success.

Further, the study identified the behavioral patterns in children that allow them to reset and synchronize their internal clocks whenever it is needed. That would be just nice to know if it stopped there, as we all know that normal adults can’t start adopting children’s behavior in the real world.

However the research went on over the following year, to develop and test strategies, based on the children’s behavior, that would enable adults to match their body clocks to whatever local time zone they were in that day. During the testing a number of surprising additional factors were identified, including the seat position, and it isn’t just window, middle or aisle.

The final report, available at http://www.sleepabc.com/nojetlag.php describes a strategy that involves the total travel period from preparation to arrival at the destination. Additionally it shows that even if applied by someone that has already arrived in a jet lagged condition, a significant improvement is usually noticed in a short time, and often complete recovery is possible by the next day.

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Source :  http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/8/prweb275596.htm