Anyone who has to struggle to get out of bed with the alarm clock may be getting up at the wrong time. The consequences of lack of sleep can have.
The internal clock determines whether a person tends to be an early riser or a late riser. If you find it difficult to get out of bed in the morning and are still tired after eight hours of sleep, you may be getting up at the wrong time. The problem: Most people are neither early nor late risers. You can find out here what effects this has on health and which group is particularly affected.
Take your internal clock seriously: are you an early or late riser?
A permanently poor quality of sleep quickly affects all areas of everyday life. Because good sleep is extremely important for physical and mental health. Lack of sleep can therefore lead to concentration problems and even to illnesses. When exactly you should get up in order to be as productive and fit as possible throughout the day can hardly be answered in general.
Don’t miss it: You can find everything to do with health in the newsletter of our partner 24vita.de.
Some people tend to be early risers, known as larks, and others tend to be late risers, also known as owls. In addition, an international team of researchers found that many people are neither real early nor real late risers. According to the scientists, about 73 percent belong to the mixed type, the so-called pigeons.
Genes and external circumstances influence the inner clock
What time a person prefers to get up depends on the science magazine cottage cheese according to 90 percent of the genes. Numerous “clock genes” or “clock genes” in organs such as the liver or stomach and the brain determine how the internal clock ticks. In addition to sleep, this also influences physical processes such as digestion, the immune system and hormone activity. External factors such as sunlight have a much smaller influence.
While there is a wide genetic diversity in chronotypes, our society is by no means attuned to different internal clocks. “The problem is that the same times apply to everyone in schools and companies,” says Professor Thomas Kantermann, head of the “Chronobiology and Work Design” research group at the FOM University of Economics and Managementt in Essen opposite Quarks.de. “The assumption that the same times are right for everyone is wrong. It doesn’t add up,” he summarizes. It would therefore be better to take the different internal clocks in society into account and set up flexible working hours, for example.
Inner clock out of balance: Many people have to get up too early
As a result, many people have to adapt their bedtime to social rhythms. They are often forced to go to bed earlier and wake up earlier. About 80 percent have to set an alarm clock on weekdays to wake up on time. However, this constant “social jet lag” can have a negative impact on health.
While people with low levels of social jet lag usually only feel some fatigue throughout the day, severe deviations can lead to long-term health consequences. In addition to schoolgirls, who are among the owls in their teens, this also includes shift workers, as a US study found out. People who work nights are therefore more likely to suffer from diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and depression. In addition, the risk of developing Alzheimer’s or certain forms of cancer is increased.
This article only contains general information on the respective health topic and is therefore not intended for self-diagnosis, treatment or medication. In no way does it replace a visit to the doctor. Unfortunately, our editors are not allowed to answer individual questions about clinical pictures.
