Experts call them circadian rhythms. The times that dictate the 24 hours of the human organism are in practice, with functions and activities that are made better at certain times than others. There chronobiology He therefore contributes to explaining several things. For example, as a research coordinated by Feifei Bu and other scholars of the University College of London reveals, precisely for the “flows” of the daily mind and body we tend to be more open and positive at the beginning of the daywhile we are led to have thoughts more marked by gloomy in the evening. The study appeared on BMJ Mental Health and adds an important piece to the knowledge of the impact of the rhythm of the clock on our well -being.
More serene in the morning and after the weekend
The research aimed to verify whether the hour of the day is somehow associated with a more frequent appearance of depressive and/or anxiety symptoms, the perception of serenity, to satisfaction for one’s existence, to solitude. 49,218 people participated in the study, periodically invited to answer questions such as: “In the last week, how happy you have felt; how satisfied you have been satisfied with your life “. The experts took into account the day, now and season at the time of filling in the questionnaire. It emerged that People generally feel better in the morningthey warn less depressive/anxious symptoms and less solitude. All this, with a greater tendency to feel happy and made. This perception then tends to blend with the approach of the evening hoursreaching a peak, in the negative, around the early hours of the night.
In addition to the circadian rhythm there are also Other “weekly” variables that would affect. The major variations of psychophysical well -being took place in conjunction with the clash. You in general is feeling happier on Friday and Monday While the “Saturday of the village” syndrome, understood for Sunday as a moment of “recovery” of thoughts and anxieties, is widely confirmed.
How we behave in the 24 hours
The study, in some way, also confirms some visions of chronobiology scholars who for some time, on the basis of analysis of hormonal flows and moresomehow defined what happens to the body and mind during the day.
In general, for example, it is the morning which sees the brain and the nervous system reach the maximum efficiency. Research shows that in the morning there is maximum supervision of vigilance and attention and coordination of movements becomes optimal. Think that, according to some analyzes, From nine to eleven the students “learn” more And in the same time slot they also tend to drop the accidents in the car, in the factory and in construction sites. This beneficial effect is due to both Cortisol production, adrenaline and aldosterone (hormones that increase the body’s response capacity to the stimuli) and also in the presence in valid quantities of some neurotransmitters (for example the serotonin), substances that “accelerate” brain responses. Then, with the passing of the hours, this brain activity and nervous system tends to limit itself. With a progressive drop in global efficiency falls.
For this thenutrition becomes fundamental As long as not to overload mind and body to limit the physiological period of “low efficiency” linked to the digestion. Again: around three in the afternoon, hormonal production is “rekindled”. And this leads to the resumption of intellectual activities that then tend to drop again with sunset.
How the rhythms of the body are regulated
Having made the necessary distinctions from person to person, the human body is affected by the rules of chronobiology, also thanks to the action of internal “stabilizers”, who operate according to the habits And they can also be affected by genetic predispositions. The “central” of biological rhythms, which in many cases suffer external stimuli such as l‘alternating of light and darkness And on the basis of these they “set” the body, they are linked to the activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary complex, or two small organs found in the brain and induce the production of many directly or indirectly or indirectly hormonesfrom those who regulate the female reproductive cycle to those related to stress.
But also hypothalamus And pituitary They probably have to submit to small groups of neurons that have been identified as central “watches” of the body. These are the suprachiesma and paraventricular nuclei. The former receive the signals that come from the so -called synchronizers exteriorlike the alternation of light and darkness or the times dictated by the work rhythm and food habits. The paraventricular nuclei instead have a duty to launch the output signalsand to pass the information received to the “stations” of processing, represented by the hypophysis, by the epiphysis (another small gland) and by another structure of light -colored nerve cells, almost blue, called for this reason locus Coeruleus. In practice, always considering as an example the continuous alternation of every day between light and darkness, here’s what happens. The above nuclei implements the progressive drop in the external brightness, thanks to the information that reaches the retina to the hypothalamus and the decrease in the production of melatonina fundamental hormone for the adjustment of the sleep-wake rhythm that is produced above all at night. At this point these neurons send the signals to the paraventricular nuclei, connected with them through an invisible nervous network recently identified. And from there, through the various control “organs” such as the hypothalamus and the pituitary that produce stimulating hormones or slowed down the metabolic activity and the body’s temperature and the “pushes” to the action of some organs such as the heart , changes theentire condition of the organism.
