People are continually trying various means to combat the after effects of long flights, from trying to prepare before the trip to medication to bright light therapy on arrival. Sometimes some of these things work. Sometimes they don't.
Professional athletes are especially vulnerable to jet lag. They're often called upon to travel across the country or half way around the world to compete and the travel and jet lag tend to interfere with the way they perform. This factor may be detrimental to teams playing in major sporting events including the 2004 Olympics.
The venue isn't Athens, but, to the Quantas Wallabies, the Australian rugby football team, it's an important event. It's the Tri-Nations competition against New Zealand and South Africa. Determined to make a good showing in Durban, South Africa on August 21, they are making every effort to be sure every member of the team is in top condition, and that includes an attempt to combat the effects of jet lag from the 14 hour flight.
To that end, they've developed a new weapon. A drug? No. You can't be too careful about drugs in sports these days. No, it's much simpler than that. Their new strategy is --- sunglasses!
Every member of the team will wear sunglasses inside and out during the early days of the trip. Some experts believe that shutting out early morning light helps to reset the circadian clock, the opposite of the bright light theory that advocates staying out in the sunlight or under the brightest artificial lighting.
Back in 2002, a team of researchers at Flanders University in Adelaide, South Australia, developed specialized sunglasses with a vision device to regulate traveler's brains. However, it was later shown by other researchers at Columbia University in New York, that the special glasses yielded only moderate improvement against the symptoms of jet lag.
The Wallabies are presently tied for the lead with New Zealand. south Africa lags behind, but could still claim the trophy with wins against Australia and New Zealand when they play on South African home turf.
Will the Wallabies win? Well, that takes in a lot of varying factors. But will they be playing their best? That depends on the team's physical and mental condition, and part of that could depend on the use of sunglasses.
If the sunglasses therapy works, it will be great new for business travelers and tourists. Unfortunately, it wil come a bit late for many people. Summer vacation is over for a lot of people. But keep it in mind for next year and give it a try.
