During sleep you have to go through a series of physiological stages that are essential for good mental and physical health. These stages are known as REM ( Rapid Eye Movement ) phase and deep or non-REM sleep phase. The circadian rhythm is a kind of biological clock that regulates these physiological functions of the body so that they continue their cycle on a regular basis.
What is the circadian rhythm?
The word circadian comes from the Latin word “circa”, which means “around”, and “diem”, which means “day”, which means “around the day” . Its meaning has a lot to do with its function, which is to regulate the changes in physical and mental characteristics that occur throughout a day. That is to say, it is a kind of biological clock of the organism . This clock is located in the region of the brain known as the hypothalamus.
The circadian rhythm is established during the first months of life and is what controls some of the daily biological ups and downs , such as temperature, blood pressure and hormone secretion. It is then fully responsible for regulating the sleep and wake cycles .
Sleep and vigilance are associated with light stimuli. The brain associates light with greater physiological activity, while in the dark these functions are inhibited. If this period is not used to rest, there will be an alteration of the biological rhythm that could negatively affect physical and mental health . This is because the individual suffers doubly, first by remaining active during the natural lethargy phase and, second, by the effort of sleeping during the activation phase.
Factors influencing the circadian rhythm
As we mentioned earlier, light is what marks the circadian clock when it comes to going to sleep and waking up . For this reason, if you sleep in a room in which, for whatever reason, light enters at night or near mobile or electronic devices that emit it, there could be a delay in the natural period of induction of sleep, interrupting it or make it difficult.
The daily routine also sets schedules for the body. Unconsciously, the brain sets a kind of schedule that will influence sleep and wakefulness. For this reason, it is very important to have more or less similar sleep schedules for every day of the week .
And finally, adequate melatonin levels will be those that produce or eliminate the feeling of drowsiness. When it gets dark, the melatonin level rises to induce the individual to sleep. Instead, with the light they lower the levels to wake him up. This function helps the sleep cycle to be in sync with the solar and night cycles.
All this means that in order to adapt the lifestyle to the circadian rhythm and for the body to be able to produce adequate levels of melatonin, you have to sleep in a place where there are no light stimuli at night and you have to have a more sleep routine. or less similar during the seven days of the week.
What time is the best to go to sleep?
A study found that we are more likely to fall asleep between 2:00 and 4:00 and between 14:00 and 15:00. This can give a rough idea of the ideal times to sleep from the circadian rhythm. Although these hours can always vary depending on the individual and their routine.
If you experience difficulties sleeping despite having a more or less marked routine, you will have to eliminate all kinds of external stimuli from the room, exercise and change your diet .
