Stay on track with sleep and avoid jet lag during the holidays : Short Wave : NPR

Traveling across multiple time zones can cause jet lag, a temporary sleep problem that happens when the body’s circadian rhythm hasn’t caught up to the destination time zone.

Simon Marcus Taplin

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Simon Marcus Taplin

Traveling across multiple time zones can cause jet lag, a temporary sleep problem that happens when the body’s circadian rhythm hasn’t caught up to the destination time zone.

Simon Marcus Taplin

Getting enough sleep regularly can be tough — and even harder when you’re traveling for the holidays. “We need sleep like we need water,” says Jade Wu, a behavioral sleep medicine psychologist and author of the book Hello Sleep. She and Short Wave host Regina G. Barber discuss what’s happening to our bodies when we get jet lag and the clocks in our body get out of whack. They also get into the science of the circadian rhythm and how to prepare for a long flight across time zones.

Check out CDC’s website for tips on minimizing jet lag.

Want to hear more science of holiday living? Email us your ideas to shortwave@npr.org — we’d love to hear from you!

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This episode was produced by Rachel Carlson. It was edited by Rebecca Ramirez. It was fact-checked by Tyler Jones. The audio engineer was Jimmy Keeley.