As the countdown to the Springbok and Australia Tri Nations rugby match in Durban this weekend gets underway, we take a look at whether the Aussies' game could be affected at all by their 11-hour plane trip and the inevitable jet lag.
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Dr Ismail Jakoet, chief medical officer of the South African Rugby and Football Union (Sarfu), gives an overview of how rugby players can minimise jetlag.
Jet lag seems to be more severe when travelling from west to east than from east to west. Therefore, South African teams playing in countries such as Australia or New Zealand will continue to be at a disadvantage when playing away from home, whereas teams from those two countries coming to play in South Africa will not be affected as severely.
It theoretically would take South Africans who are travelling to Oceanic countries between nine and eleven days to recover from jet lag if precautionary measures are not taken.
What is jet lag?
Jet lag should not be confused with the tiredness that one feels after a long journey in a car or after flying north or south for a considerable number of hours.
One’s body functions are controlled by a “physiological clock” which gets disrupted when one flies from east to west or vice versa to destinations in different time zones.
The symptoms experienced when this “physiological clock” is disrupted (“confused”) are referred to as “jet lag”.
What are the symptoms?
Tiredness during the day of arrival at the destination.
Listlessness and inability to perform or train optimally.
Change in normal bowel activity, e.g. constipation.
Inability to fall asleep at night.
The duration of the jet lag would depend on the number of time zones crossed. The symptoms will last one day for every time zone. It also depends on what measures have been taken to eliminate these symptoms.
Who is affected?
Trained sportspersons tend to cope better than administrators or untrained sportspersons.
Older individuals tend to have more severe symptoms.
Precautions can be taken
Precautions can be taken before the flight, during the flight and upon arrival.
Before the flight
Suitable planning of training schedules/dieting needs prior to flight.
Adjust sleeping patterns to the new time zone the week prior to flight, such as the time of rising and going to bed.
Adjust training times to coincide with the time zone of your final destination.
Give yourself sufficient time to overcome the symptoms of jet lag prior to the commencement of the competition. In the event of Australian and New Zealand teams travelling, it is advised that they should arrive at their destination at least seven days prior to the commencement of competition.
During the flight
If you are going to arrive at the final destination during the day, you should make every attempt to sleep on the plane. Short-acting benzodiazipines such as Imovane/Dormicum/Dormonoct have all been proven by SARFU to be effective in inducing sleep, yet allowing players to wake up without headaches and alert after 4-6 hours of sleep.
Minimise alcohol intake and avoid coffee or tea.
Have a high-carbohydrate meal prior to retiring, but not in large quantities.
Drink plenty of fluids during the flight, before retiring.
Upon arrival
Adjust to the destination’s time zone as soon as possible.
Bright light can “advance” your body clock, so exposure to sunlight (outdoors) instead of getting into bed upon arrival is advised. The best time would be between 11h00 and 17h00.
Do not sleep during the day.
Increase your fluid intake.
Melatonin capsules taken in the evenings have proved to be useful in some instances.
Arrange training sessions in the late afternoon and try to keep them to the bare minimum in the first couple of days.
Originally written by Dr ISMAIL JAKOET, based on the original article by Waterhouse/Reilly/Atkinson.
As the countdown to the Springbok and Australia Tri Nations rugby match in Durban this weekend gets underway, we take a look at whether the Aussies' game could be affected at all by their 11-hour plane trip and the inevitable jet lag.
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