Weekend partying leaves people with ‘social jet lag,’ study says

If you want to feel well and healthy every day, a consistent sleep-wake schedule is the key. Most people maintain that schedule during the week, but weekends can seriously disrupt that schedule and cause feelings of fatigue, bad moods, and un-wellness.

Partying all night on the weekends, for example, leaves people with a feeling similar to jet lag. Over time, these episodes of social jet lag can cause health problems including heart disease, depression and insomnia, a new study found.

Researchers at the University of Arizona found that for every one hour that sleep time is changed, people described their health as worse. So people reported poor or fair health instead of excellent health. They also reported bad moods and more fatigue.

Acknowledging that it is unrealistic to expect people to never have a late night, researchers advised people to minimize artificial light when they arrive home. Don’t turn on the television, computer, or phone. Instead, keep light low and go to bed.

The findings were presented at the annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies in Boston.