Do jet lag apps really work? What to know about the science behind them

Jet lag from travelling can be a nuisance if you’re on vacation, a work trip or even returning home, but there are ways to overcome it.

Jet lag from travelling can be a nuisance if you’re on vacation, a work trip or even returning home. But experts say there are ways to “minimize the misery,” such as using different apps.

A growing number of Canadians are hoping to squeeze in a summer getaway this year despite cost-of-living concerns, recent Ipsos polling done exclusively for Global News shows.

The further away one travels, the worse the jet lag can be.

“If you cross time zones, there’s a real extreme form of adjustment that happens,” said Olivia Walch, CEO of startup Arcascope and researcher in the department of neurology at the University of Michigan.

“Most people don’t have the best sense of what their circadian time or their biological time is,” she said in an interview with Global News.

In recent years, several apps have been developed to mitigate the effects of jet lag and help people adjust their schedules to a new time zone.

Walch, who developed one of these apps, called Entrain back in 2014, said such tools “are great because it’s not always intuitive to know when light is helping you or hurting you.”

Here is what to know about jet lag and how different apps work to help overcome it.