Cycle Of Life

Our body clock controls when we wake up, what our hormones get up to and even our body temperature. The bad news? It can go completely out of whack. The good news? You can reset it.

- Anupama Bijur

You may have heard of the phrase ‘My body clock is ticking’ used by women to express that they are experiencing increased maternal instincts to have a child, knowing that their fertility window is shrinking. But the body clock refers to much more than the instinct to bear children. It manages our hormone releases, sleep patterns, body temperature and much more. Dr Anupama N, consultant at the preventive medicine department at Sakra World Hospital, Bangalore, says “Biological rhythms are a system in the body, which control the occurrence of natural processes such as waking, sleeping and ageing. The majority of us have a balanced body clock. Some of us, however, are early risers (larks) and some are night setters (owls). Larks are at their most active in the morning while owls prefer evenings. People with a balanced body clock are those in between. The body clock, however, changes through different stages of life— children are often larks, teenagers turn into owls, and adults return to lark-like patterns.”

“Today’s lifestyle has led to the disruption of the body clock, and hence led to major health problems like diabetes, heart diseases, obesity and cancers,” says Dr Anupama. “Lack of sleep, irregular sleeping and eating habits, sedentary lifestyle, and stress have led to an increase in such health issues.”

GET ON THE RIGHT CYCLE

There are four categories of biological rhythms, says Shalini Arvind, chief dietician at Fortis Hospitals. She explains how they work.

CIRCADIAN RHYTHMS