Many vacationers will discover the relative joys of jet lag. Positive in the East/West direction, painful in the opposite direction, it is difficult to escape… you just have to adapt.
The explanation is in the disturbance of the biological clock which defines our rhythms… In fact, all our organs, all our vital functions have a rhythm whose frequency is different. It is not a clock that manages our life but rather a set of watches obeying an hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, or even annual oscillation for certain functions.
We do not know the name of the great watchmaker, but that of one of his assistants, melatonin. It allows the body to orient itself in time by providing an interface between the outside and the inside of the body. It is in particular the light/dark alternation that triggers its secretion. Melatonin works mainly by reinforcing the drop in our body temperature, which allows us to fall asleep.
Melatonin is a hormone
Who says hormone, says possibility of treatment. We have indeed placed very high hopes on melatonin. Remember the work of Professor Baulieu against aging. Today there is no real proof, and that’s a shame, because it’s not just a question of solving the problem of jet lag, but also, for example, that of 3×8 work which ruins the nights of hundreds thousands of workers.
Going back to melatonin, in breast cancer for example, it has been found that its level in the blood of American women is lower than that of Japanese women, who develop far fewer breast cancers. Air hostesses – who, because of their travels, have anarchic melatonin secretions and therefore a lower rate – also have twice as many cancers of this type as women who stay on the ground. Our body is very dependent on the day/night and light/dark rhythm. All major biological functions are, directly or indirectly, controlled by this system: hormonal secretions, but also the functioning of the heart, digestion, immunity, and of course the brain…
So what to do?
For jet lag, there are several schools.
Those who take a sleeping pill, as soon as they get on the plane, then the first night to find sleep… This only pushes the problem back with the risk of feeling a little depressed in the morning.
There are those who take melatonin, a drug long banned in France, purchased in supermarkets in the United States, of which there is no proof of its effectiveness in jet lag.
And then those, there are many among the great travelers, who know how to be patient and take nothing.
