Circadian Rhythms Disorders And Sleep Phase Syndrome

Title:
Circadian Rhythms Disorders and Sleep Phase Syndrome

Word Count:
866

Summary:
Some people tend to sleep early and wake up early in the morning and some cannot sleep early and as a consequence, wakes up late. These and other sleep-related problems are manifestations of a malfunctioning biological circadian clock and characterize several forms of Circadian Rhythm Disorder.


Keywords:
Circadian rhythms disorders, jet lag, insomnia, sleep phase, sleep disorders, 24 hr cycle, sleeping problem.


Article Body:
Sleep forms part of human’s biological need to rest. As a person sleeps, the various physiological processes of a human body figuratively put into an apparent arrest and some parts of our system that were mostly exploited can be replenished for future use.

However, imagine a system so disrupted that our normal scheduling for sleeping and waking is totally altered. Some people tend to sleep early and wake up early in the morning and some cannot sleep early and as a consequence, wakes up late.

These and other sleep-related problems are manifestations of a malfunctioning biological circadian clock and characterize several forms of Circadian Rhythm Syndrome. Circadian activity is a unique by 24-hour period or cycles in which our body is physically patterned.

24-hour vs. 25-hour cycle

Earth rotates around the sun in a 24-hour cycle, so as our body functions in this 24-hour time schedule. All living organisms charismatically subscribe to this cyclic resting and activity patterns so that their body could function in sync with the environment in which they live.

Although humans externally operate under a 24-hour environment, research found that our body clocks evidently works significantly different than what we see in the environment.

It shows that the human body closely behaves as if it were under a 25-hour environment. Convincingly, humans’ reluctance to wake up at a required time and sleeping late at night probably explains this theory.

To compensate for this discrepancy, the body uses time “cues” to effectively counter-manage this asynchronous rhythmical. Setting an alarm helps us wake up at a designated time of the day and allows us to function as if it were under the 24-hour rhythmic schedule.

Dark vs. Light

Light and temperature provides the determining factor by which the body responds to the 24-hour activity period. The presence or absence of light mainly affects the part of the brain, which paces your bodily activities.

It was understood that the fundamental locus or location of our biological clock is the brain specifically in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus.

In complex animals like humans, hypothalamus forms part of the autonomous nervous system, which in part, controls the functions of organs that are not voluntarily controlled, hence involuntary. Involuntary, meaning, they are not governed by conscious will to act. These include breathing, heartbeat and intestinal digestion.

Eyes, Light and SCN

One interesting point to make is that the location of SCN is just above the optic chiasma (cross). Optic chiasma can is described as a location where optic nerve fibers meet and cross (chiasma-cross).

It is fitting to say that; the perception of light through the opening in the eyes triggers the wake/sleep patterns in humans since this is one way the organism receives such physical message.

As retina (a portion of the eye where initial image of an object is stored) traps light rays, an optic fiber relays the image to the brain via characteristic electrical pulses.

This unique sensory impulse is carried along the optic fibers to the occipital lobe (rear part) of the brain and is perceived as images. The proximity of the optic chiasma to the SCN perhaps provides the opportunity for the hypothalamus to “sense” the referred electrical impulses.

Forms of Circadian Rhythms Syndrome/Disorders

Circadian Rhythm defects can come many distinct forms depending on the amount and timing of waking up and sleeping. Others, as in the case of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), result in the changes in the length of day and night.

People who tend to sleep at a later time of the day and wake up late as well are said to be exhibiting Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome (DSPS). These people tend to develop insomnia, an abnormal inability to take adequate amount of sleep due to not being able to sleep at the right time of the night.

Still, other people, especially the elderly, are more likely to sleep early around 7:00 PM and consequently wake up early around 1:00 AM or 2:00 AM. This is a symptom of disrupted natural biological rhythms known as Familial Advanced Sleep-Phase Syndrome (FASPS).

The amount of a substance called melatonin is also perceived as a motivating factor in sleep-related disorders in humans. In a study among vertebrate mammals, melatonin is secreted in response to the absence of light.

This means more melatonin is secreted in the period of darkness and less in the presence of light. It presupposes the idea that melatonin is related to the 24-hour sleep/wake cycle of every human being.

Recommendations

With the knowledge gained in the preceding discussion, it can be assumed that the presence and absence of light affects our sleeping/waking schedule. With these in mind, keep yourself committed to your schedule to rest and sleep and set aside things, which are not really important.

Keep your room as dark and gloomy as possible, to make it easy for you to sleep. Colorful objects stimulate your senses and disrupt sleep. Keep it ventilated and air-conditioned.

Studies show that as we sleep, our body temperature drops and allows the neurotransmitter melatonin to be produced at a rapid pace.

Keep those things in mind and do not forget to seek medical help should your condition progresses.

BONUS : Title:
Circadian Rhythm Disorders, Quality Sleep, and Overall Health

Word Count:
541

Summary:
The article is about the importance of sleep and Circadian Rhythm Disorders (CRD). This disorder may lessen one's quality of sleep and hamper the production of certain hormones and neurotransmitters. In addition to these ill-effects, such disruptions in one's circadian rhythms may cause an increase in one's blood pressure and cause many physical damage.


Keywords:
fatigue, insomnia, treatment


Article Body:
Adequate sleep is essential to one's overall health. The body needs sleep to rest both the mind and body and restore energy. Sleep is also the time where the body repairs itself—through sleep, the cells and tissues that has been damaged repairs it self. In addition to these health benefits, the body boosts and builds up the immune system through sleep. The immune system may experience breakdown and result to different ailments that would require medication and extended recovery times. Medical studies show that sleep seems to help recharge the immune system. However, there are many factors that may hinder individuals to have adequate sleep and therefore further hamper health developments. Disruptions on one's circadian rhythm is one factor that may hinder quality of sleep.

Circadian Rhythm Disorders (CRD) are disruptions in a person's circadian rhythm—a name given to the human body's internal body clock. This body clock regulates the 24-hour cycle of biological processes in animals and plants. The circadian “clock” in humans is located in the brain and are significant in determining one's sleeping patterns. Disruptions of the circadian rhythm may result in getting poor and insufficient sleep. One disruption in natural sleep conditions is night work or non-standard shifts. Working in the evening require a delay in the body's sleeping time of as much as three to 12 hours. Because the human body is programmed to sleep at night, changing one's sleeping time will not automatically produce a change in body temperature or other functions needed like body coordination and immune responses.

Another factor that may disrupt sleep and hamper one's sleeping patterns is a condition called jet lag. It a condition that is marked by fatigue, insomnia, and irritability that is caused by changing time zones when traveling by air. When travelers pass from one time zone to another, they may suffer from disrupted circadian rhythms. This may cause the traveler's circadian clock to be mixed up with a new external environment. People who experience jet lag may have difficulties in maintaining their regular sleep-awake pattern in their new location. This happens because external stimuli like sunlight and location programs and dictates a new pattern.

Although generally linked to sleep pattern of human beings, the circadian rhythm also has a direct influence on one's blood pressure, and the body's production of hormones and neurotransmitters. It works together with these internal factors to tell the body of several things like sleeping time and wake up time. These factors is warning that such disruptions in one's circadian rhythms should never be taken for granted.

Because modern technology and medicine CRD can be treated based on the kind of disorder that is present. Treatments vary depending on the demands of lifestyles of certain individuals. Therapies are usually combined with sleep hygiene techniques to promote proper sleep from CRD. Chronotherapy and bright light therapy are two methods that are used to treat this disorder. Chronotherapy is a behavioral technique where one's bedtime is gradually and systematically adjusted until a specific bedtime is achieved. Bright light therapy on the other hand is designed to reset an individual's circadian rhythm to a desired pattern. When properly utilized, these therapies may produce essential results in eliminating CRD and improve one's quality of sleep.