March 1st, 2007 at 1:31 am
I have often wondered how the body works with having an internal clock, commonly known as The Biological Clock.
It is fascinating to think that my body can adjust itself to waking up within 5 minutes of setting my alarm clock every morning or if I am in a different time zone, my body reminds me that I have the same 24 hour biological clock as if I was at home (can be called jet lag) e.g. I will start getting tired at 6pm in London because it is actually 11pm in Ohio where my biological clock is used to.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, this 24 hour clock is known by scientists as circadian rhythms (derived from the latin words circa dies or ‘about one day’). Related research focusing on circadian rhythms found that it could be related to a part of the brain called hypothalamus, a man made pacemaker, and a protein called cryptochromes, located throughout the human body that detect change in light and resets the body’s clock.
These circadian rhythms supposedly play an important role in our lives… it helps balance ones metabolic rate, sleep patterns, wakefulness and body temperature. Disruption of the circadian rhythms may cause unrestful sleep patterns, and more alarmingly has been found to increase mania in people with bipolar disorders, cause irritability, increase the rate of heart attacks (in the morning), increase the rate of asthma attacks (in the night) and cause weight gain.
I found some ways (on the web) to counter jet lag and trick your biological
clock …
(Sources: Readers Digest and Chronicles.com)
“Try drinking 2 liters of water on the flight immediately (you need to bring your own) and then going to sleep”
“Try “No jet lag”, a herbal medicine from New Zealand.”
“Booze!”
“Codeine mixed with judicious amounts of alcohol”
“Try to keep awake in the new timezone you are at (when you are sleepy and your body thinks it is bedtime) and sleep at the correct time according to
the new timezone instead.”
“Don’t sleep a couple of days prior to your travel.”
“If you’re flying east, book an early flight. If you’re flying west, however, book a later flight.”
“Begin preparing for time changes a few days before your departure by getting up a half hour to an hour earlier or by going to bed later (depending on where you’re heading).”
“When you get on the plane, immediately adjust your watch to the time of your destination. If it’s nighttime, try to sleep.”
“Use sunlight to reset your clock. After flying west, spend a few hours outdoors in the afternoon; after heading east, take a half-hour walk outside in the morning.”
“Consider taking melatonin when you get on the plane to help you sleep, and then again after arrival when it’s time for bed to help reset your body clock.”
Have you got any other ideas of how to combat jet lag and your biological clock?
2 Responses to “The Biological Clock”
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kailani said: @ 1:48 pm
March 2nd, 2007
I guess for me it really depends on where I’m flying to. I usually try to keep my schedule consistent with my home time zone.
montage said: @ 2:53 pm
March 2nd, 2007
A solution which actually works combines simple acupressure with a modern update. See www.JetLagPassport.com.