Do you know that in the morning you are full of energy and you can freely move your eyes as far as you want or you often scrolled during the night? These are not a random phenomena. In fact, they are the living examples of how an individual’s body clock, or circadian rhythms, govern all aspects of a person’s health.
Physiological oscillations that occur ~24 hour after a cycle are circadian rhythm and are mainly regulated by external and internal light and darkness. These rhythms in a way dictate such vital needs as sleep rhythm, metabolic rhythm, hormonal rhythm, thermal rhythm and many more to make a human body well-tuned.
In the last decade especially, chronobiology, which is the scientific study of biological rhythms, has especially attracted a lot of attention since it seeks to enhance human health. This article explores in detail what circadian rhythms are, how they affect your life, and what you can do about it to get your rhythms to synchronize for a healthier, happier, and more efficient life.
Get an Overview of Circadian Rhythms
Circadian rhythms are generated in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) which consists of several cells located within the hypothalamus – the center of many essential brain-related processes. SCN receives signals from specialized ganglion cells in the retina specific for change in light and uses it to make bodily rhythms adjust to whichever time it feels is appropriate.
The effects of circadian rhythms are far-reaching, influencing the following aspects of our physiology:
1. Sleep-wake cycle:
Sleep cycle is regulated by Circadian rhythms, they decide at what time of the day we sleep and how long and good that sleep will be. This means that if our circadian rhythms become disturbed due to shift work, or jet-lag, sleep disturbances result and that may affect overall health.
2. Metabolism and appetite:
The raising and falling of a hormone level depend upon time and insulin sensitivity, glucose tolerance, and fat breakdown oscillate also in a circadian fashion. Variations in these can, in turn, affect hunger, appetite and selection of taken foods and so act to maintain appropriate control of body weight.
3. Hormone production
: It also regulates secretion of hormone that ranges from cortisol, this is a stress hormone, melatonin is known to be a sleep hormone in addition to growth hormone. These hormonal rhythms are abnormal and lead to cycles of mood swings, obesity and some kinds of dementia.
4. Cell regeneration and repair:
Tissues within our body are known to have circadian rhythms and functions such as DNA synthesis, cell division occurring at a certain time of day. These cycles are useful in that they allow repair mechanisms of cells to happen optimally and without the risk of the cells getting damaged or getting diseases.
Finally, there are disruptions of circadian rhythms associated with shift work disorder, jet lag disorder or seasonal affective disorder.
It is now understood that disruption of circadian rhythms may be an etiologic factor is many disease states including metabolic diseases such as diabetes and obesity, mood and anxiety disorders, cardiovascular diseases, and certain cancers.
Surviving the overnight shift, waking up in the morning and feeling alert, and surviving sleepless nights and jet lag are just some of the immediate impacts of circadian disruption, which affects millions of people across the world. Most experts have linked sleep deprivation to cognitive dysfunction, memory impairment and immune dysfunction. In addition, extended wakefulness results in poor diet quality, increased calorie consumption and subsequent obesity, which is an underlying factor towards the escalating rates of metabolic illnesses around the world.
Synchronizing Your Healht Clocks
Fortunately, there exists hope of entraining or synchronizing some of these circadian rhythms for the overall well-being of an individual. Here are some strategies for aligning your body's internal clock with its environment:
1. Regularize your sleep-wake cycle:
Ideally, try to stick to a particular sleep-wake cycle, during weekdays as well as on weekends. It controls the body’s circadian rhythm and makes you sleep better at night.
: Staying out in the fresh air during the daytime, preferably in the morning, can really help regulate one’s natural body clock and give them the wakefulness and vigor that they need.
3. Limit exposure to artificial light at night:
Many devices and screens give off the blue light that is not conducive to the production of the sleep hormone in your body called melatonin. Following a bit of 'digital deworming,' done an hour before sleep, you’ll find that the setting is just right for sleep.
: Regular eating habits ensure a proper body metabolism and moderates blood sugar and preapares the body from unwanted abrupt changes in energy and hunger.
5. Practice relaxation techniques
: Stress hormones such as Cortisol reduce the chances of people having a proper sleep cycle therefore anything that counteracts stress is good for sleep hence relaxation activities like meditation or deep breathing exercises.
Conclusion
Chronobiology has a lot to tell how the human body’s natural biorhythm has an effect on the well-being or the ill-health of human body. In other words, the potential of chronobiology to promote more stable, healthy and effective living can be unleashed by recognizing and synchronizing or timing with the external timing environment the potential of chronobiology. Now that we know more about circadian rhythms, the opportunities for gaining better health and improving our quality of life through their principles will only increase steadily.
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