For all those caught up in the excitement of booking a long-haul flight and jetting off to an exciting new destination, there is one main downside: jet lag. It’s a challenge that neuropsychiatrist Irshaad Ebrahim advises on. After founding the London Sleep Centre in 2002, he set up several other such institutions across the world, including The Constantia Sleep Centre in South Africa. Here, he gets us up to speed on beating jet lag.

Pre-flight
“Before you even get on the plane, you need to have established good sleep-hygiene routine,” says Ebrahim. “This will immediately help to offset any effects of jet lag.” Exercising regularly and drinking plenty of water are among his top recommendations. Other tips shared by medical professionals include resisting the temptation to nap throughout the day and investigating your clock gene (a protein-coding gene that plays a central role in regulating circadian rhythms) through lab tests if you suffer from daytime drowsiness or regularly wake up in the night. The most indulgent recommendation of all? Ensure that your bedroom is a sanctuary. Pile up a stack of escapist titles, play some relaxing tunes and or put on that cucumber facemask. It’s all about maintaining a bedtime routine before your flight, says Ebrahim.

On board
“Once you’re on the aircraft, there is one trump card that you must play,” says Ebrahim. “Clock into your destination the moment you get on the plane. Check the season and time difference beforehand. When you’re on the aircraft, you should switch to the timings of the country that you’re travelling to. Fall asleep when people there are going to bed and wake up when they are waking. This allows you to prepare psychologically and behaviourally for landing in a new place.” It also prevents you from falling asleep unexpectedly upon arrival. So pull down your window, insert your earplugs and put on your eye mask. This should all lead to a restful sleep.

On arrival
“Taking a melatonin supplement is a useful aid in combatting jet lag,” says Ebrahim. The hormone is produced in the brain in response to darkness and helps with the timing of your circadian rhythms. “The key to this is taking it about an hour before sleep once you land. Continue taking it for three days after arriving and repeat for another three days when you return from your trip.” The doctor is also keen to stress that exposure to the right type of light is essential. “There is a lot to be said for light therapy,” he says, explaining that an exposure to special bright-white light bulbs that emit 10,000 lux (an amount similar to the light in the sky just after dawn) can be beneficial to sleep. “Buy a portable light-therapy lamp and switch it on 30 minutes after waking up. It helps to suppress melatonin and gives your brain the impression that a new day is starting.”