I’m a doctor… cheap £2.60 supermarket spread can completely cure jetlag
A HEALTH and wellness expert has revealed their top tips for beating jetlag and one involves a cheap spread that is readily available in supermarkets.
The founder of Renovatio Bioscience Dr Vincent Cadrawinata says that jetlag is caused by a combination of three things – disruption to your circadian rhythm, dehydration and poor circulation.
Your circadian rhythm, or body clock, is thrown out of sync when you cross time zones.
Those circadian rhythms can also be affected by the blue light coming from our screens, so if you’re travelling a fair distance and watching, say, a film on the journey, that’s double trouble when it comes to feeling the effects of jetlag.
Dr Cadrawinata recommends that if you want to sleep, you need to stop using your screens for at least 30 minutes beforehand.
The second aspect is to make sure you’re not dehydrated and that can be easily prevented by drinking plenty of water.
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He told : “Imagine a bottle of water being squeezed and then expanding, our body is able to cope with that.
“But obviously, for people whose body is not hydrated properly, it impacts your brain function, because 70 per cent of our brain is water and that perception of time can even be made more sensitive or worse.”
The advice is to avoid alcohol as this can have a dehydrating effect and to also move about as much as possible.
The doctor said: “Our body relies on blood circulation that delivers not only nutrients, but also oxygen.
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“When people are dehydrated, or not tolerating the cabin pressure very well, obviously that impacts the amount of blood and the quality of oxygenated blood that goes to the brain.”
As well as drinking plenty of water, Dr Candrawinata also recommends eating Vegemite.
The popular yeast extract spread is readily available from the shelves of most high street supermarkets with a 220g jar selling for around £2.60.
According to the doc, the spread is “packed with the B vitamin, and is also quite salty” so with drinking lots of water you can top up your electrolytes.
Another recommendation, which may seem rather left-field, is to always brush your teeth, according to the expert.
Dr Candrawinata said: “Because it means that you get ready at least an hour before landing, and you get moving, you basically encourage your body and tell your body that come on, it’s time to get active again.”
To help beat the effects of jetlag once you arrive and get your body back into gear, he also recommends doing some light exercise which can help prevent jetlag turning into something worse.
He added: “Because when your body doesn’t get rid of jet lag in the first 48 hours, it then makes the whole system sluggish.”
“There’s only so much that your body can tolerate when it comes to being dehydrated and having a poor circulation.
"When your body is being dehydrated for a prolonged time… your body starts to have to work harder, and couple that with poor circulation, and some people are more prone towards having issues.
“That means that your body is prioritising things like breathing all the important stuff and taking the blood circulation away from your digestive system.”
Anyone who doesn't like the taste of Vegemite, might want to try these unusual foods that are also said to help combat jetlag.
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A sleep expert has also given their top tips to prevent jetlag setting in.
Meanwhile, a flight attendant has also given their top five tips to beat the condition.
