Drug Authority Calls for New Discussion on Jet Lag

Tuesday, May 18, 2010 by: Christopher Babayode
Tags: jet lag, drugs, health news

(NewsTarget) The US Drug Authority has chosen to deny a request to allow a currently used drug to be prescribed for jet lag. The practice, commonly known as an off label prescribing, had been in consideration for approximately three months.

It was refused as off label status due to questions raised over the PGI-S data (Patient Global Impression of Severity) provided. The drug company's response was to schedule a meeting with the authorities to resolve the matter in the near future. In this instance it would seem that reason prevailed. Taking an inconvenience and turning it into a treatable illness is not a recipe for success unless you are a drug company. Common sense won the argument this time, but for how long?

How long before other drug companies try to exploit the need for a cure with other drugs, and turn a genuine concern about healthy flying into an all out frenzied feeding ground for revenue hungry drug companies? It is certain other pharmaceutical companies were watching this outcome with keen interest . No doubt they will be keeping an eye on said company's next move.

Drugging us first and asking questions later is not the answer. What we need now more than ever is a holistic solution or at least one that doesn't leave you with side effects that chronically undermine your health. When you consider that a greater percentage of flight diversions or in-flight emergencies are due to medical problems, the last thing you want to do is give everybody carte blanche to drug themselves. Doing this would spell a recipe for disasters waiting to happen; as it is airlines incur additional fees and expenses for diversions and wouldn't relish the extra burden of having to take on this additional responsibility.

A healthy solution is the only solution worth considering and it starts with seeing jet lag for what it really is. Jet lag brings about a unique set of circumstances not least the total alienation from the environment we are used to at sea level. As science pushes forward to understand the inner workings of Man the nature of our relationship and connection to the earth is being understood in a very real way. The relatively new science of Chronobiology, which is the study of timing in biological systems, is shedding light on how circadian rhythms are disrupted when we fly. Taking research a step further the Californian Institute of Human Sciences says research has been conducted which confirms that the human being checks its reference to the earth every 90 seconds - something you would definitely find hard to do at 36,000 ft!

Pharmaceutical companies trying to peddle drugs to alleviate jet lag are playing the age old game of tinkering with nature and getting less than satisfactory results, not least because they understand details about the cause and condition without placing the detail in its proper perspective - the drug under consideration was touted to be valid just for east bound travel (what fliers were supposed to do on their return journey is anybody's guess!). As long as the approach sees Man and his functioning as a law unto himself - not subject to the laws of nature - any solution will always fall short.

Given this brief reprieve a new debate on this inconvenience needs to take place before we expand the powers of Big Pharma to drug us for every little inconvenience that should dare to cross our path. Let common sense prevail.

New York Times - Regulators Reject a Drug Makers Plan to Use it's Alertness Pill to Overcome Jet Lag. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/30/business/3...

Washington Law Blog - Provigil and Nuvigil: FDA denies Jet Lag, FTC denies Lawsuit Drop, Cephalon appeals.http://www.phillipswebster.com/blog/2010/03/...

Fierce Pharma - FDA denies Cephalon's bid for Nuvigil in Jet Lag. http://www.fiercepharma.com/story/fda-denies...

About the author

Wherever you go P.H.A.R.E. well.
www.jet-stress.com.
The Jet Stress Specialist.