A NASA Astronaut reveals the secrets to beating jetlag

NASA astronaut Mike Massimino shares his top tips with Travel + Leisure on how to avoid jetlag.

<p>The Everest/Getty Images</p>

It’s no secret that there are many people who love the outdoors. Travel + Leisure We are big fans of flying. We aren’t fans of the following? Jet lag. Mike Massimino is a former NASA Astronaut and has the secrets to beat it. jet lag For good.

In celebration of the inaugural National Lose the Jet Lag Day (put together by the suite United credit cards from ChaseT+L interviewed Massimino (who is also an advisor for the new high-tech). Timeshifter appThe aims to reduce jetlag by combining modern science and travel advice. 

“I was a NASA Astronaut for 18 years and went to space twice,” Massimino told T+L. “For my first trip to the Hubble Space Telescope, we had a launch time of about 5:30 a.m., which meant we had to wake up at about 9:00 p.m. [the day before] Fresh and ready to start our day, check the space suits, get debriefed then get out to launchpad to make sure the spaceship is in good condition. [was] Work, and then go to space. So, jet lag was not allowed.”

He explained how NASA realized that these odd hours could lead to intense jetlag, and so they set out to combat it through more scientific research.

“They really got into the science behind it,” he reiterated. “It’s a timing issue to reset your circadian clock.” Here are a few quick tips from Massimino on how to avoid jet lag.

Understand when you should see light and when you shouldn’t.

Massimino states that controlling light exposure is key to resetting your circadian rhythms. This will help stop jetlag. “It’s a timing issue to reset your circadian clock. So, based on the day-night cycle, when to see light and when to see dark allows you to shift more expeditiously,” he shared.

And there’s plenty of science to back this up. As Scientific American explainedLight exposure can be helpful in advancing or retarding a person’s circadian rhythm. The result was based on a study done by the Rush University Medical Center in ChicagoThe light therapy involved participants exposing themselves to the sun in the morning. This caused the circadian rhythms of the participants to shift by 2.1 hour. Participants would feel less jet lag and more adjusted than if the light therapy was skipped.

Reduce your caffeine intake and consider when you should take melatonin.

Massimino wasn’t an avid coffee drinker during his NASA days, but he shared he’s come to be quite the caffeine aficionado now that he’s back on Earth. However, Massimino is aware that caffeine can alter his sleep cycles.

“Melatonin is a natural substance that we have in our body that tells us that it’s time to sleep,” Massimino said, adding that scientists have found it best to “take small doses.”

Then again, science agrees. The Mayo Clinic explained, “The latest research seems to show that melatonin aids sleep during times When you wouldn’t typically be resting, making it beneficial for people with jet lag.” The Mayo Clinic adds that when you take melatonin matters. If you’re traveling east, Mayo Clinic said you should take melatonin in your new time zone to adjust to your new local time. However, if you’ve flown west, take melatonin in the morning, to help reset your internal clock to a later schedule.

The Mayo Clinic also agreed with Massimino, adding, “A dose as small as 0.5 milligram seems just as effective as a dose of 5 milligrams or higher.”

The Timeshifter App can be downloaded and used to do the heavy lifting.

Does figuring out when and when you shouldn’t expose yourself to light, when and how much melatonin you should take, and if and when you should curb caffeine seem like a lot to keep track of? Easy, Massimino said. There’s an app for that — and he helped build it.

“In my opinion, the best thing to do is use the app. [It’s] so easy.,” Massimino said.

Both Massimino und the app’s website The app simply asks for the user’s trip information and then generates a personalized itinerary that includes when they should sleep, how to expose themselves to sunlight, what to drink, and whether or not to avoid coffee. By doing this, you can actually enjoy your trip more than just sleeping through it.

Get the Timeshifter app here.

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