JUN 15, 2015 10:52 AM PDT

This is How Jet Lag Works

WRITTEN BY: Anthony Bouchard


You may not have known this, but your body is specifically used to the times that you wake up, go to sleep, and go about your daily routines. This is called the Circadian Rhythm, or Circadian Clock.

Your body uses sensory nerves in your eyeballs to determine what time of day it is. The nerve uses light color tones to determine when it's time to wake up and when it's time to start shutting down. For example, the warmer colors of sunset remind your body that it's the evening and time to start winding down.

When you travel long distances at extremely fast rates, such as on an airplane, you might travel across time zones, where that part of the world will have a different time than you're accustomed to.

As a result, say you were travelling from an Eastern state to a Western state, you would be prepared to go to sleep earlier than you normally would because you just added more time to your Circadian Clock that throws it out of whack and makes you feel tired earlier. This is known as Jet Lag.

You can prevent Jet Lag by going to sleep earlier a few days before your trip such that when you arrive in the new time zone, you're already ready to adjust to the new time zone.

About the Author
Other
Fascinated by scientific discoveries and media, Anthony found his way here at LabRoots, where he would be able to dabble in the two. Anthony is a technology junkie that has vast experience in computer systems and automobile mechanics, as opposite as those sound.
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