Meeting a deadline for school or work can be stressful, especially if it determines your future with your studies or in your career. In some instances, there might be a big assignment to finish at midnight or in the morning before your class or job. In those cases, sometimes we sacrifice hours of sleep-in order to get the work done before the deadline. Although we get satisfaction that we finished the work, we do not get enough sleep for the next day and must rely on caffeine to keep us up to function throughout the day. It is normalized to pull an all-nighter in American society to get work done, leading to many people sleeping in on the weekends. Even though it seems like you are catching up on the sleep that you missed over the weekend, you are affecting your sleep-wake rhythms, also known as your circadian rhythm.
Circadian rhythm is the natural biological clock in an organism that derives from the earth’s axis of rotation on every 24-hour cycle. Typically for humans, it is recommended to get between 8-10 hours of sleep every night, without interruptions in the middle of the night or having difficulty falling asleep. Dr. Summa and Dr. Turek discussed in their research article about circadian desynchrony, that circadian disruption correlates to different chronic diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and other chronic illnesses (Summa and Turek, 168). Certain organisms' sleep wake rhythm is set for a specific time of the day, when it is best for their bodies to be awake, eat, and do physical activities. For humans, it is best for us to be awake during the day and sleep at night. During the day, specifically in the morning, our bodies secrete insulin, controlling blood sugar levels throughout the day (O’Connor, 2023). This helps our metabolism and keeps us active during the day. However, when we disrupt our circadian clock constantly, it can contribute to disrupting metabolism, creating illnesses such as diabetes from the inappropriate timing that does not align with our internal 24-hour clock.
For instance, night shift workers eat during the night and sleep in the daytime throughout the afternoon to keep their shift. However, this substantial shift going from sleeping at night to doing work at night diverts their internal clock. Although they may get used to the night shift, internally their biological clock is thrown off balance creating some health problems. Dr. Turek and Dr. Summa have shown that night shift workers have an increased risk for chronic diseases, especially diseases and gastrointestinal diseases because of their shift in the timing of their meals (Summa and Turek, 173). Even though they can stay up during the night, the human internal clock was set up to digest food throughout the day, and as the day goes on, metabolism slows down. If metabolism is slowed down even if they are starting their day at that time, it can lead to weight gain because human bodies are not biologically or evolutionarily used to processing the food as they would during the daytime.
Moreover, the misalignment of your sleep circadian rhythm such as insomnia, which is another sleep condition that makes it hard to fall or stay asleep, may trigger mental health disorders such as anxiety, depression, mood disorders, and other mental health disorders. Furthermore, this could be the other way around; mental health disorders can also trigger sleep disturbances like insomnia. Researchers have said that getting enough sleep helps us process emotional memories and form connections in our brain (University of Southampton, 2023). Yet if we are not able to process these emotional memories, it can tie into behavioral problems. Dr. Meyer from King's College Londen and other researchers from the University of Southampton, Stanford, and other institutions have seen circadian disturbances in young adolescents with psychiatric disorders; revealing that when there is an increase of disruption in circadian disruption there is a greater risk of developing mental health and behavioral disorders (University of Southampton, 2024).
Fortunately, through treatment such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for sleep disturbances like insomnia, it has helped people with psychiatric disorders in order to get the sleep that they deserve. They have seen a decrease in their anxiety and depression, as well as getting their circadian rhythm back in alignment. Another recommendation to aid sleep for people who have immense stress before bedtime, is taking melatonin or other over the counter sleeping aids, that are not addictive or that they must rely on every night (University of Southampton, 2024). Once your circadian rhythm has come back to its original setting, people will start to get tired around an appointed time; being able to get enough sleep and waking up early enough to start their day and get to work.
Overall, sleep is essential for function and alertness in the body. Interruptions or disturbances of sleep are destructive to the physical and mental health in organisms. Ensuring that you get the recommended 8-10 hours of sleep and getting a consistent bedtime every night prevents disruption of your sleep wake cycle and keeps your circadian rhythm in check. However, in modern day society, it is hard to get a good amount of sleep if your work is demanding. Although society may make it seem like you are lazy for prioritizing getting enough sleep over working all day and night, your health is more important than a deadline.
O’Connor, A. (2023, January 10). It’s not just what you eat, but the time of the day you eat it. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2023/01/10/meal-timing-big-meals/
Summa, K.C., and Turek, F. W. Circadian desynchrony and health.
University of Southampton. (2024, February 19). “Understanding the relationship between our sleep, body clock and mental health. Science Daily. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/02/240219153604.htm
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