Sleep Deprivation and Winter Blues

            Ever feel like you never get enough sleep during the winter? Find yourself a bit depressed when the weather begins to cool? This is actually very common for most people and it has a name, seasonal affective disorder or SAD. It can be characterized by symptoms that are similar to that of depression. Low energy, difficulty to fall asleep, and lack of interest in things you used to enjoy. It is observed, through Drosophila flies, that temperature plays a part in our circadian rhythm. Our circadian rhythm can be characterized to be our bodies own clock, it regulates our bodies and tells us when to sleep, wake up, and even when to eat. The connection between temperature and our circadian rhythm is that when temperatures begin to drop it excites sleep-promoting neurons making us sleepier when the days get colder. This is connection makes it easier to understand when people become more sluggish and tired during the winter promoting SAD. 

          Earlier in the semester, Dr. Cavanaugh came in to talk about, in short, how circadian rhythms persist without any light cues. What was interesting about this was that, although circadian rhythms persisted, they were delayed a little every day. This indicated that light helps to tell the brain when to fall asleep and when to wake up. During the winter it is difficult to get much sunlight because it is usually gloomy and cloudy during colder seasons. This further identifies why SAD persists mostly in the winter. With less light cues and UV light during colder months, people become groggy and tired from day to day. It comes as no surprise when I say that majority of college students are sleep deprived. This arises mostly because college students mostly spend their night working on assignments or studying for exams, and even if they are not doing this they are up stressing about assignments and exams that are due. This causes sleep deprivation, and can even be severe. I know of kids that do not sleep for more than 3 hours a night on a weekly bases. This causes harm to one's circadian rhythm pushing it farther and farther back the longer one stays up. This can lead to many health problems, lower grades, and even a shorter lifespan. It is also known that sleep plays a vital role in helping store memories, which is extremely important for college students, muscle recovery, and many other things. 

         There is no specific cure to treat SAD or sleep deprivation other than getting necessary sunlight,  and by making changes to one's daily lifestyle and habits. As I said before, during periods of colder months it is difficult to get proper sunlight because of the gloomy cold days winter entails, but there are alternatives. One alternative, as proposed by Dr. Hatem Asad, M.D., is using UV light therapy to act as the light coming from the sun. This can help decrease the symptoms of SAD such as sadness and tiredness allowing the body and circadian rhythm regulate. As for sleep deprivation one can change their lifestyle by doing an assignment earlier and not leaving it until the day before its due, or studying for an exam earlier so one is not so stressed for an exam. All in all be sure to get as much sleep as possible and as much sunlight as needed to keep your circadian rhythm balanced. 


Resources: http://georgiastatesignal.com/sleep-deprivation-students-worse-winter-heres-can/
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