Internal Clocks for Humans and Fish The lives of humans are regulated by their circadian rhythms, or 24-hour cycles. This rhythm affects all life forms, but have you stopped to consider a life without this clock? Recently, researchers in the Department of Biology at Lund University in Sweden have studied one species that has eliminated […]
Photon Project Leads Study of Effects of Natural Light Exposure
Alzheimer’s. Diabetes. Parkinson’s disease. Have you ever wondered whether one factor is the cause of all these maladies? Well, it just may be circadian rhythm disruption. Researchers have found that with today’s lifestyles of working long hours inside buildings and coming home to sit in front of the television, the lack of access to natural […]
Circadian Rhythm Confusion and Resetting Our Internal Clocks
The Circadian Rhythm and Sleep Our bodies are run by a circadian rhythm, an internal clock consisting of 24-hour cycles. This intuitive mechanism governs a variety of processes from sleep to the body’s metabolism. It is affected by environmental elements, such as sunlight and temperature. Scientists have also been studying the effects of the moon on […]
Shift Work Could Lead to Impaired Cognitive Function and Memory
In a study involving more than 3,000 men and women performed by scientists in Sweden and France, participants whose work hours weren’t the typical “9-to-5” were found to exhibit impairments in both long- and short-term memory, brain processing speed and cognitive function. Like chronic jet lag, shift work can throw the body’s circadian rhythm, or […]
How Shift Work Negatively Affects Our Biological Rhythms
Modern industries keep people working around the clock. Outside of the general nine-to-five grind, shift workers exist. These people work late hours, rotate their hours from week to week, or try to work on through until dawn. As they consume one cup of coffee after another to keep their REM pressure at bay, the constant […]
