By Nicole Iuzzolino
No matter where you go, traveling is always exciting. Whether you are going to luxurious white, sandy beaches, or a Parisian city, you are bound to have an amazing experience. However, there is something that is always not as relaxing, and rather stressful. This is when it comes to getting to the dream des- tination: air travel. Getting through the airport, checking bags, and waiting for sometimes hours through security lines. No one looks forward to this part of the journey, but it is something that must be done. When on the plane, it is not usually comfortable as everyone is squeezed together in tiny seats on a jam packed flight. When traveling on the plane, the flight itself may be extremely uncomfortable for your body. The air travel itself messes with your body in weird ways, and here are the five ways it does.
1. Stress Level Increases
As I stated before, traveling and getting to our dream destinations are not always easy. It can sometimes suck the life out of us! When air traveling, it can increase stress to high levels. Health.ClevelandClinic gives some suggestions on how to decrease stress.The first suggestion is to plan ahead. Have all your bags by the door the night before and your airport outfit laid out and ready to go. Any little preparation taken can ease any sort of bodily tension and stress.
2. Feeling Sleepy
When you are flying, you are at such high altitudes. Because of this, you may experience altitude sickness such as a headache or drowsiness. Global medicine director Paulo M. Alves states, “Oxygen partial pressure drops accordingly, creating a mild hypoxia (low oxygen), which can cause a headache in some susceptible individuals”. To prevent this from happening, drink plenty of water beforehand and avoid alcohol/ caffeine, which can increase your chances of having a headache.
3. Bland Taste Buds
Airplane food is not always the best tasting, and many try to eat before- hand to avoid it. However, air travel may be the reason why your taste buds are not finding that airplane food so tasty. The air you breathe in on the plane dries out all the mucus in your mouth and nose, due to the low humidity levels. This alters the way your taste buds react to certain foods. However, the taste can be restored when hydrating.
4. Loss of Moisture
Being stuck on a plane can almost suck the life out of your skin. There are multiple tricks to solve this problem. The first thing you can do to cure this is to drink lots of water, which is the best way to bring back hydration. There are also a multitude of face balms and hydration sprays that are perfect for air travel.
5. Jet Lag
Everyone has experienced some sort of jet lag, and it is never a fun time. Your body becomes exhausted and very drowsy due to passing over multiple time zones. You may be wide awake in the middle of the night or ready to sleep for hours at noon. However there are a few ways to cure this awful exhaustion. The easiest way is to take a cold soak, which will wake your body up quickly. Timing your sleep schedule is also helpful, as you will feel more rested when waking up upon landing in your foreign location.