When we travel long distances, it’s not only our phones and watches that need to be reset to fit the new time zone. The human body’s internal clock also has to adjust, which can take several days – an experience known as jet lag. But a group of scientists believe they’re on the cusp of a solution, after experimenting on the part of the brain responsible for keeping track of time.

Called the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), this small cluster of brain cells regulates the rhythms of many different body functions, making us sleepy at night and alert during the day. Unfortunately, our body clock is slow to adapt to change, leaving long-distance travelers struggling with jet lag and night shift workers battling similar feelings of fatigue. As well as being a nuisance (for instance, causing people to snooze through their holidays, or fall asleep in business meetings), it can also be a health hazard, with persistent lack of sleep linked to a variety of health issues.

By exposing mice to deliberately confusing patterns of light and dark, researchers at Kyoto University in Japan were able to monitor the effects of jet lag in rodents. The team found that when certain receptors in the brain were prevented from functioning normally, the mice could adapt to changes far more quickly. This indicates that vasopressin – a hormone involved in the regulation of water in the body, amongst other things – plays a crucial role in keeping our body clocks ticking, and that interfering with its release could make us more resistant to jet lag. The hope is that one day we’ll be able to take medication to suppress the relevant receptors in our brains, meaning that when we fly across the world, our body clocks will no longer lag behind!