DEFINITION: Your Circadian Rhythm is a daily rhythmic activity cycle, based on 24-hour intervals. Every organism on the planet has their own Circadian Rhythm.
Lack of sleep, problems falling asleep, or staying asleep is a very big issue for many people. Most people do not know their natural circadian rhythm because it gets disrupted by late night artificial light, alarm clocks, erratic schedules, and get little to no sunshine during the day.
Two years ago (before I was Paleo), I traveled to China for 2 weeks. When I got back home, I was having a really hard time adjusting back to the Los Angeles time zone. My mother told me to go outside and get sunlight every morning to help me adjust to the current time zone. At first I thought she was crazy, but then I looked into and she was exactly right! My circadian rhythm was disrupted, and my “jet lag” wasn’t going away, and the sun helped regulate my sleep cycle!
Having a disrupted circadian rhythm can unfortunately cause other harmful conditions to the body. According to Paul Jaminet, Ph.D from www.perfecthealthdiet.com, “restoring or strengthening circadian rhythm may be therapeutic for the following conditions:
- Sleeplessness and poor sleep
- Constipation
- Depression, bipolar disorder, and other psychiatric disorders
- Metabolic syndrome and obesity
- Neurodegenerative disorders
- Hypothyroidism
- Suppresses immune function
- Increases vulnerability to infectious disease
Even for healthy people, tactics for enhancing circadian rhythms may improve health.”
ACTION: As you can see, not having a regulated sleeping pattern can be extremely harmful to our bodies. To help regulate my circadian rhythm I’ve begun getting sunshine the second I wake up. This will help me feel tired at night at the right time. So I’ll go outside to get the mail, or sip my coffee outside and let the sunlight directly hit me and embrace the light, even if it’s only for a few minutes. If you know me, you know that I’m really groggy in the morning and I feel like since I’ve started doing this, I more quickly snap out of my groggy state and begin to feel sharp and more alert!
Your circadian rhythm will also regulate if you go to bed at the same time and wake up at the same time everyday. Experts recommend going to bed at 10pm, which is based off the cycle of the sunlight. It is best if you begin to dim the lights around an hour before going to bed so your body knows to create melatonin, which is the hormone that makes you feel sleepy and drowsy. If you constantly have artificial light while going to bed, then your body doesn’t know it is time to create melatonin and you feel “wired” and probably have a hard time falling asleep. They also recommend sleeping in a pitch black room in colder temperatures.
Try it! And let me know how you feel! 🙂
