The Importance of Daily Rhythms

Your circadian rhythm may have a much large impact on your body and brain than you think

That we, and other plants and animals, have daily rhythms has been known for centuries. Over the years this has been shown to be much more fundamental to all aspects of biological functioning and therefore health – than many could have assumed. Recent research has given more weight to this by looking at cellular processes.

When we think of daily rhythms we probably think of our classic daily routines – get up, have a shower, drink a coffee, etc. or something similar.

This is a daily routine but many of us also have a weekend routine that differs to our weekday routine. And those of you who are still young, but not necessarily just the young, may spend Fridays and Saturdays “partying” and staying up all hours and then sleeping half the day the following day. This is known as social jetlag.

It is known as jetlag because it sends the body clock out of synch and can leave you feeling fatigued for days. And this body clock is what I would like to focus on here because this is an underestimated part of health and brain functioning.

The daily cycle is known as the circadian rhythm. In recent years the importance of this has risen as more and more research points to the mechanisms but also the dramatic consequences that occur with disruptions to our daily rhythms.

First off, what is a circadian rhythm?