Prior to a recent vacation to Cuba - flight from Manchester , UK to Varadero i took melatonin for 1 week - after a gruelling 14 hour journey ( delays etc & drop off at Holguin ) we arrived at our hotel late in the evening .
Myself and my partner woke up fresh as daisys , with not a hint ov jet-lag , in fact we where the only travellers from our flight to be at breakfast & lunch .
and
Well we did'nt take any melatonin whilst on vacation and forgot to take it prior to departure like we where supposed to do .
consequence - on return to the uk both off us felt dredfull ..the dreded jet lag had caught up with us ! since then i use melatonin on a reugular basis especially when travelling long haul ..i have learnt that some airline pilots also use this substance ?
1. Outbound you were flying East to West so jet lag was not a major issue.
2. Inbound you were flying West to East and you experienced jet lag.
3. Malatonin should not be used by flight crews without prior consultation with your AME (
http://www.flightsafety.org/hf/hf_may-june96.pdf) .
4. CAA CAP 768 3.1:
"...
Because melatonin will cause sleepiness and impair performance immediately after ingestion, and because the after-effects could be detrimental to operational efficiency, operators should forbid its use less than 12 hours before the start of a flying duty period and during the duty period."
The CAA have *not* banned melatonin but *do not recommend it*:
Again, CAA CAP768 3.1
"An informal CAA survey revealed that some users experienced nightmares, morning grogginess, mild depression, nausea and genital pain. In the light of what is now known about melatonin, its use by flight and cabin crew is not recommended."