Just as many of us glance at the clocks around us to determine the time of day, our bodies come with their own internal, twenty-four hour clock to determine certain daily behaviors. This internal biological clock is classified as a circadian rhythm. It regulates our sleeping and waking cycles and can be altered by environmental factors such as sunlight and temperature. The body relies on this circadian clock to stay informed on the time of day to know when it's time to wake up, however the body also relies on light to know when it's time to wake up. The same applies for sleep, the body relies on it's circadian rhythm and the amount of darkness to determine when it's time to sleep for the night. If for some reason the circadian rhythm is thrown off balance then this could cause a person's health to be effected, particularly when it comes to feeding behaviors.
Research on Drosophila is currently being conducted on their circadian rhythms in relation to feeding behavior. In particular Austin Dreyer's talk, "Circadian Regulation of Drosophila Feeding Behavior" provided information on how the circadian rhythms of Drosophila can determine the amplitude or strength of feeding behavior and how it relates to humans. Tampering with the circadian rhythm of the fruit flies changes when they feed and how much they feed.
One example of how the body's circadian rhythm can affect a person's health is in the article, "Circadian Rhythms of Hunger". They compared two groups of overweight women on how eating a large meal for breakfast and eating a large meal for dinner can change how you lose weight. The group who ate a large meal for breakfast lost more weight than the group who ate a large meal for dinner which shows that there can be an effect on how the body processes food based off of the time of day of a person's feeding behavior. This relates to Dreyer's talk because the fruit flies also experienced a change in feeding behavior when their circadian rhythm was altered. The article also mentions there being a natural circadian rhythm for hunger. With more extensive research it's possible that people's health can be improved by learning about the effects circadian rhythm has on our health.
Works Cited
https://idmprogram.com/circadian-rhythms-fasting-19/
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