Circadian rhythm disorders are the disruptions in a person’s internal biological clock. It is responsible for regulating our 24-hour cycle as per our day and darkness of the day. Our 24-hour biological cycle is responsible for many activities like brain wave, hormone production, regeneration of cell and temperature rhythm of the body. Suprechiasmatic nucleus is where our circadian clock is located in brain. It is mainly a group of cells that are located in the hypothalamus region of the brain and it helps in determining the sleeping patterns in human. Any changes in the normal functioning of our biological clock causes circadian rhythm sleep disorders.
Effect Of Environmental Cues On Circadian Rhythm
Circadian rhythm is also can be explained as the biorhythms that exhibits three important properties.
- Free-run – Well in the circadian rhythm runs without the presence of external cues also known as zeitgebers.
- Reset – Circadian clock often gets changed by the environmental conditions that includes the light and darkness of the day and also the temperature variations.
- Invariant – Sometimes circadian clock may run over an extensive range of physiologically relevant temperatures.
Though, studies are still going on to find why circadian clocks have been designed to keep on ticking for longer period when there is an absence of cyclical environment, it is a condition which is against the nature and usually has no presence in the universe.
Composition Of The Circadian Clock
Circadian rhythm is very difficult to comprehend but its knowledge is very necessary to help in getting the right treatment. Also it is very less known to people around, so it becomes very necessary that you understand the basic composition of your circadian clock. Your circadian rhythm is usually composed of three interconnected parts.
- Input part which transmits environment signals such as light and temperature.
- These signals are connected to a clock
- Output stream that transmits these signals and manifest overt rhythms.
However studies shows that circadian rhythm output paradigm is mainly depicted to move from left to right but it’s not certain as there are some cases in which it is usually working in the opposite direction. These mainly inhibit the actions of your circadian clock and usually when the input part does not get enough exposure to environment cues it gives rise to circadian rhythm sleep disorder and associated problems.
Some Self Help Remedies
Circadian rhythm sleep disorder can be treated and you can always go for some self-help remedies at its initial level. It is very essential to maintain good sleep hygiene. It is an effective way control body’s natural tendency to sleep. You should be disciplined about your sleep timing so always adhere to consistent sleep and wake hours. Always avoid napping in the noon time even though you did not have perfect sleep at night. Try to avoid sleep deprivation and also take proper care that you do not have emotional stress and fatigue. Do not indulge yourself in vigorous exercise before bed time and keep your regular exercises going on in the smooth flow. These things will surly help in maintaining a perfect sleep cycle of your body and you may avoid having any sleep disorder.
