Staggering amount of Brits expected to pull a sickie after Easter break

With a long four-day weekend for most, Brits are making last-minute travel plans to relax and reset, with research suggesting that almost 30 per cent of them will call in sick if they've travelled overseas.

A new study by YOTEL has lifted the lid on long-haul travel habits, with a third of people being put off due to their fear of jet lag.

Almost a third of respondents (37%) admitted to finding jet lag challenging with exhaustion (25%), headaches (21%), trouble concentrating (15%) and nausea (10%) being cited as some of the top things Brits experience when suffering from jet lag.

The research also revealed that 27 per cent of Brits who work have admitted to calling in sick because of jet lag after long-haul travel, with those living in London and Leeds being the worst culprits.

Findings also showed that 36 per cent of men compared to 27 per cent of women are more likely to call in sick, and over half of respondents believe that their colleagues are not sympathetic to the impact of jet lag on their performance at work.

"At YOTEL we enable our guests to stay non-stop and get centred quickly in some of the biggest gateway cities in the world. Having witnessed how disruptive jet lag can be as part of this journey, we set out to take actions and forge new partnerships to best equip guests to stay on the go while they travel," Olivia Donnan, Vice President of Brand at YOTEL, said.

"In partnership with like-minded innovative brands, Fount and Urban Jungle, we’re continuing to challenge the status quo and pushing boundaries to stop jet lag from disrupting our guests’ travels."

Discussing the spectra of jet lag and its effects, sleep expert Dr Charlotte Edelsten, explained: "Jet lag needn’t ruin your trip, if you plan in advance, you should be able to acclimatise to your destination time zone before you even travel."

Dr Edelsten went on to share five tips to help overcome jet lag:

• Once you board the plane, shift all your activities to match the local time of your destination. Change your watch immediately and align your meal times (even if not hungry) and sleep, light and dark schedules accordingly
• Stay hydrated before, during and after the flight. Flights are naturally dehydrating so sip water as much as possible
• Try to book a flight that lands during the daytime, get outside as soon as you land and get as much natural light as possible
• Don’t take a nap upon arrival, this will help your body adjust more quickly to the new time zone and will aid in resetting your internal clock. Napping will reduce your sleep pressure, which we needs to be as high as possible to ensure good sleep initiation and maintenance.
• Try to prioritise your sleep in the weeks and days leading up to your flight, going into travel well-rested will help lessen the impact of jet lag.

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