Timeshifter App Uses Circadian Science to Tackle Jet Lag

Jet lag isn't simply a sleep problem, according to Timeshifter, a circadian tech company helping travelers and shift workers adjust to new time zones.

"Everything that's shared today publicly about how to address jet lag is wrong," says co-founder and CEO Mickey Beyer-Clausen, pointing to poor public understanding of circadian science.

Each brain contains a tiny clock-the suprachiasmatic nucleus-that governs the circadian rhythm, explains chronobiologist Martha Merrow of the University of Oxford. Because internal time differs from person to person, flying across time zones creates a mismatch: jet lag. Light, not sleep, is the main lever for resetting that clock; sleeping at the wrong time can shift it the wrong way.

The app asks for age, sleep times, caffeine and melatonin habits, and chronotype, then builds a personalized plan days before departure covering light exposure, caffeine, and sleep. Its protocols were first developed for NASA astronauts by co-founder Steven Lockley, formerly of Harvard Medical School. Former astronaut Michael López-Alegría says the guidance can accelerate the body's natural one-hour daily shift dramatically-up to three to four hours a day, according to Lockley.

Merrow, who has no commercial ties to the company, says the plans generally align with circadian science but notes compliance can be difficult. Timeshifter offers a free first plan, then $9.99 per trip or $24.99 yearly, with free access through partnerships including United Airlines and InterContinental Hotels.