GARY ZAMMIT, PhD: People who suffer from jet lag are probably experiencing difficulty with their sleep: difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep. Depending on the severity of that problem they can experience daytime performance impairments, impairments in attention, memory, concentration, or other cognitive functions.
ANNOUNCER: While you have no control over the time change when you land, there are some ways to lessen the problem even before take off.
GARY ZAMMIT, PhD: One thing is to try to anticipate life in the new time zone. Setting your watch to the new time zone before you board the plane might help you get in synch mentally with what's going to be happening once you land. The traveler also might want to gear his or her schedule of food intake so that it's consistent with the destination time zone.
ANNOUNCER: Having arrived, there are options to combating jet lag. One is as simple as night and day.
GARY ZAMMIT, PhD: The most important cue that entrains our body clocks is the rising and setting of the sun. Arriving at your destination time zone in the morning and getting exposure to bright sunlight is exactly what you want to do. If you're in your destination time zone, at the end of the day, you want to make sure that you're getting little exposure to light.
ANNOUNCER: Keeping busy and living life on the new time zone schedule is also important. Some experts suggest that taking melatonin, a naturally-occurring hormone involved in regulating your body clock, may be another way to help you readjust.
