How to minimize jet lag while flying across time zones

There is no doubt that the sight of foreign landscapes and people of heterogeneous cultures can be quite thrilling for those who travel a lot.

But jet lag is one of the unpleasant experiences associated with crossing multiple time zones while on a flight to a foreign country.

From adjusting your watch to adequately resting amidst all the fun, here are five tips to help you beat jet lag while transitioning into a new time zone.

Adjust your watch

As earlier hinted, adjusting your wristwatch in sync with the time zone of the city for which you’re headed is probably one of the first things you should do once you’re on board.

Not only does this help get rid of the confusion that accompanies the memory of your former time zone but it also eases your transitioning into the new.

Napping

Napping during the course of your journey would help avoid imminent moments of grogginess, headache and disorientation.

You could keep track of the city’s local time prior to your trip, start thinking in the new time zone and ensure you nap depending on your flight direction and whether you’re on daytime or overnight flight.

Hydrate yourself

Whether you’ll be napping or busying yourself with the airplane console, try to drink as much water as possible to help mitigate jetlag.

Avoiding alcohol, coffee and soft drinks while opting for fruits would help since the former tend to dehydrate you, making jetlag more vivid.

Watch out for your first day

While the fatigue from staying put in a cramped space for long is likely to pull down on you and tempt you to nap some more once you land, yielding might not be such a good idea.

You could do non-exerting workouts, use some outdoor time or do your emails to help you stay up until the normal bedtime. This would make it easy for your body clock to adjust to the new pattern.

Watch your diet

An informed adjustment in your diet might do you a lot of good and help in minimizing jet lag.

Doctors recommend the consumption of protein-rich meals early in the day and light evening carbohydrate-rich meals to provide the nutritional requirements for activities and sleep respectively.