What to do about jet lag?

For some, flying is a routine. No matter how much security we have to go through to get on the plane, it's still quicker than all the other land-based systems of transport. For others, it's an adventure. We have saved our dollars and now we get our reward - a flight to the holiday destination we have been dreaming about for months. Except that, the further we fly, the worse the effects on our bodies. Some flights are nicked-named, the "red-eye" flights because of their timing. When they land, the people leaving the plane look and act like the cast out of Night of the Living Dead and shamble through the rest of the day like zombies. When the flights take us across different time zones, the effects can be just as devastating. One of the reasons for this is sleep (or the lack of it). Our bodies have natural circadian rhythms. We have a body clock that automatically tells us when to eat, to sleep and so on. If something disrupts that daily cycle, all the body's processes are disrupted. A theory has recently taken hold that the body clock can be reset by using ambien. The idea is a simple one. If you are going to fly forward or back twelve hours, you will be expected to function at full alertness at a time your body clock tells you it's night. Without intervention, your body's temperature will drop slightly, your metabolism will slow and you will feel tired. But let's say you take ambien on the plane. Now you sleep out of synch with your old time frame, but in the right frame for your destination. This is thought to be taking the first step to resetting the clock. In fact, there have been many confirmed stories in the media of sportsmen and women using ambien to get themselves to sleep so they match the local time zones. Some physicians can be persuaded to prescribe ambien for this purpose or you can just buy the ambienonline as you need it for your travel. However, although everyone agrees that it's the most effective drug to combat insomnia generally, its use for this purpose is more controversial. Forcing the body to sleep is not the same as getting good quality sleep when your body is expecting it. Merely making you perform the activity of sleeping at the local time, is not resetting the clock that regulates your metabolism. Most informed physicians prefer people to live through the change and adjust naturally.