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What Is Circadian Rhythm and Why It Affects Your Sleep

sleep seriesEver wondered why you feel energised in the morning some days and groggy on others? Or why you naturally wake up at the same time every day—even without an alarm? The answer lies in your circadian rhythm—your body’s internal clock that runs the show when it comes to sleep, energy, alertness, and more.

Let’s break it down.

What is Circadian Rhythm?

The term “circadian” comes from Latin:

  • “Circa” – meaning about or around
  • “Dian” – related to the day
  • Rhythm – a repeating pattern or cycle

So, it literally refers to a roughly 24-hour internal cycle your body follows every day—governing things like sleep, wakefulness, body temperature, hormones, and alertness. Interestingly, it’s not exactly 24 hours—it’s about 24 hours and 15 minutes!

The Role of Light in Circadian Rhythm

The main trigger for circadian rhythm is light. Even though research shows it can still function without external light (like in a dark room), light exposure—especially sunlight—greatly influences it.

At the core of this system is a tiny region in your brain called the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus (SCN)—often referred to as your “third eye” or biological clock. It sits just above where the optic nerves from each eye cross and processes signals related to light, helping your body know when it’s time to wake up or wind down.

Your Circadian Type: Early Bird or Night Owl?

Not everyone’s rhythm is the same. People generally fall into three chronotype categories:

  • Early Birds (25%) – feel energised early in the morning
  • Night Owls (25%) – peak energy comes later in the day
  • The Majority (50%) – somewhere in between

This 1–2 hour variation explains why some thrive at sunrise, while others come alive at night. You can find your chronotype through various free online tests.

How Circadian Rhythm Impacts Your Day

Your energy levels, alertness, heart rate, and even body temperature follow a circadian pattern. For example:

  • Core body temperature can drop by 2°C during rest
  • Heart rate can fall by 20 beats per minute

Trying to maintain consistent productivity throughout the day isn’t always natural. That’s why timing your most demanding tasks to match your personal energy peaks—say 11 am to 1 pm or 4 pm to 6 pm—can make a real difference.

Even jet lag is a result of circadian misalignment—your internal body clock is out of sync with the local time zone.

How to Align Your Body Clock for Better Sleep

Want to improve your sleep and energy levels? Here’s how to work with—not against—your body clock:

  1. Understand Your Chronotype
    Discover when you’re naturally most alert and schedule important activities accordingly.
  2. Get Morning Sunlight
    Spend 10–15 minutes in natural light as early as possible. This helps set your body clock for sleep later in the evening.
  3. Use a ‘Bedtime Alarm’
    Instead of setting an alarm to wake up, set one to start your sleep routine. Going to bed at the same time daily trains your circadian rhythm.
  4. Dim the Lights After 7:30 PM
    Reduce screen and light exposure. Even better—enjoy a candlelight dinner to encourage natural melatonin production (your sleep hormone).

Understanding and aligning with your circadian rhythm isn’t just good for sleep—it’s great for your overall well-being. By syncing your routine to your natural rhythms, you’ll find yourself sleeping better, feeling more alert during the day, and living more in tune with your body.

#BeTheForce 

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Foods for Better Sleep: Natural Remedies for a Restful Night

foods for sleepHow many hours do you spend in bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep? You close your eyes, but peaceful, quality sleep seems to evade you every time. Sound familiar? We’ve all been there. While factors like stress and lifestyle play a role, the solution might be simpler than you think—your diet. Let’s explore some foods that can help you achieve the restful sleep you’ve been dreaming of.

Why Food Matters for Sleep

What you eat can significantly impact your sleep quality. Certain foods contain nutrients that promote relaxation, regulate sleep hormones, and help you fall asleep faster. By incorporating these foods into your evening routine, you can create the perfect environment for a good night’s rest.

Top Foods For Better Sleep

  1. Warm Milk
    Warm milk in general, contains ingredients that are known to help people sleep. For instance, milk contains tryptophan – an amino acid that can help the human body produce serotonin – a brain chemical which can induce deeper and more restful sleep by creating melatonin. If you have sleep issues, some warm milk with a little bit of jaggery and turmeric 15-30 minutes before going to bed should do the trick.

  2. AlmondsHealth Benefits Of AlmondsAlmonds contain high doses of melatonin, a hormone that helps regulate the sleeping and waking cycle. Around 5-6 whole almonds contain a good amount of magnesium and of calcium – two minerals that help promote muscle relaxation and sleep especially in people who lose sound sleep due to muscle tetany or leg pain. These can be consumed in the evening or even before bedtime. It’s great for people who sleep late as they can munch on these for a good night’s rest.

  3. Chamomile Tea:
    For years, chamomile tea has been used as a natural remedy to reduce inflammation, anxiety and treat insomnia as well. In fact, chamomile is commonly regarded as a mild tranquilizer or sleep inducer. Chamomile tea contains an antioxidant called apigenin, which may help initiate sleep. You can brew 1 tea bag/ fresh chamomile tea with hot water and drink it before bed or late evening.

  4. Walnuts
    Walnuts contain a few compounds that promote and regulate sleep, including melatonin and serotonin. Each serving of walnuts also contains other nutrients that can help induce sleep such as magnesium. You can munch them along with almonds for combined benefits late in the evening for snacks.  

Foods to Avoid Before Bed

While some foods can help you sleep, others can disrupt your rest. Avoid these before bedtime:

  • Caffeinated Beverages: Tea, coffee, and energy drinks can keep you awake and cause acidity.
  • Spicy or Heavy Meals: These can lead to indigestion and discomfort, making it harder to fall asleep.
  • Sugary Snacks: High sugar intake can cause energy spikes and crashes, disrupting your sleep cycle.

Achieving restful sleep doesn’t have to be complicated. By incorporating sleep-friendly foods like warm milk, almonds, chamomile tea, and walnuts into your evening routine, you can create the perfect environment for a good night’s rest. Remember, consistency is key—make these foods a regular part of your diet for long-term benefits.

Have you tried any of these foods for better sleep? Share your experiences in the comments below! For more tips on improving sleep and overall wellness, explore our Healthy Reads or consult a GOQii Coach for personalised health advice. Subscribe now to start your wellness journey!

#BeTheForce

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Struggling with Sleep? Your Circadian Rhythm Might Be to Blame

circadian rhythmCircadian Rhythms are 24 hour cycles that are part of the body’s internal clock, which aid essential functions and processes. For instance, the sleep-wake cycle is a well known circadian rhythm. Different parts of the body follow circadian rhythms that are connected to the master clock of the brain. The master clock is affected by the environment, which is why the circadian rhythm is tied to the day and night cycle.

While following your body’s natural clock can help you reap some amazing benefits, doing the opposite can create many health problems. Researchers also believe that circadian rhythms play an important role in the diverse aspects of physical and mental health.

How Does It Affect You?  

Circadian rhythms work best when the body processes are optimized at various points during a 24-hour period. It works with the mental and physical systems throughout the body. The digestive system produces proteins to suit the timings of the meals, and the endocrine system regulates the hormones to suit normal energy expenditure. 

During the day, when you are exposed to sunlight, the master clock sends signals to generate alertness which keeps us awake and active. As night falls, the master clock helps in the production of melatonin, a hormone that promotes sleep, and sends signals that helps us to sleep through the night. When we sleep well at night, it helps us be active during the day.

Straying away from your body’s clock can give rise to serious sleeping problems. Without proper signalling from the body’s internal clock, a person can struggle to fall asleep and wake up during the night, or being unable to sleep as long as they want in the morning. This leaves a person with little energy, attentiveness, focus, etc. 

In addition, studies have found out that Circadian rhythm disruptions as potential contributors to obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a sleep disorder marked by repeated lapses in breathing. OSA reduces the body’s oxygen levels and causes numerous sleep interruptions through the night.

Types of Sleep-Wake Disorders 

  1. Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome: This type of circadian rhythm disruption is associated with people who stay up late at night and sleep late in the morning. The main cause is unknown but may be related to genetics, underlying physical conditions and a person’s behaviour.
  2. Jet Lag Disorder: This happens when a person crosses a lot of time zones in a short period of time during intercontinental flights. They are likely to suffer from sleeping problems and fatigue from jet lag.
  3. Irregular Sleep–Wake Disorder: People with this rare disorder have no consistent pattern for their sleep and may have many naps or short sleeping periods throughout the day. It may affect the brain and cause dementia. 
  4. Shift Work Sleep Disorder: commonly affects those who work non-traditional hours, outside the typical 9am to 5pm work day. Shift work schedules go against most people’s internal body clocks or circadian rhythms. 
  5. Non 24 hour Sleep-Wake Disorder: This condition occurs in people who are blind and are not able to receive light. Their body follows a 24 hour cycle, but their sleeping hours change backwards by minutes or hours at a time.

Tips To Maintain Your Circadian Rhythm 

  • Exposure to sunlight: It is good to walk early in the day so that you can get good exposure to natural light and take in some Vitamin D.
  • Avoid caffeine: Stimulants like caffeine can keep you awake and can disturb the circadian rhythm. If you have trouble sleeping, avoid caffeine after noon. 
  • Eat a protein rich breakfast: Protein gives you the strength to be active throughout the day.
  • Avoid stress: Keep a positive attitude. Be assertive instead of aggressive, meditate, do yoga and eat healthy well-balanced meals.
  • Get daily exercise: Take a brisk walk early morning and keep yourself active throughout the day. This can help your internal clock and make it easier to fall asleep at night.
  • Take a short nap in the afternoon: Short naps can relax us while long naps throw our sleep off schedule.
  • Limit light before sleep: Artificial lighting can interfere with the circadian rhythm. Therefore, dim the lights and turn off all electronic devices one hour before bedtime.

Researchers believe that chronic disruptions in circadian rhythms could affect the immune system leading to weight gain, impulsive slower thinking and other physiological and behavioral changes from the observation made in people who work in shifts and those who are often jet lagged. 

If this article intrigued you and you’d like to know more, check out our article on the Circadian Rhythm Diet and how it helps. To balance your sleep-wake cycle or ensure better sleep quality, reach out to a GOQii Coach by subscribing to Personalised Health Coaching here.

#BeTheForce 

Disclaimer: The information provided in this blog is for general awareness and educational purposes only. It is not intended to replace professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider for personalised medical guidance or concerns related to your health.

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Improve Sleep and Sleep Quality with these Lifestyle Changes

Improve sleep and sleep qualityWhile sleep requirements vary slightly from person to person, most healthy adults need between 7-9 hours of sleep per night to function at best. It has been estimated that more than half of the working population in India have experienced some or the other form of sleep deprivation or alteration during their lifetime.

Globally, the prevalence of insomnia ranges from 10-15%.

Sleep deprivation reduces your cognitive processes like thinking, learning, attention, concentration, etc. Chronic sleep deprivation increases the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, irregular heartbeat, etc. Over time, lack of sleep can contribute to symptoms of depression and kills your sex drive. And yes, lack of optimum sleep can make you gain weight.

How to Improve Sleep and Sleep Quality

1. Stay away from gadgets
Using electronic devices before bedtime can be physiologically and psychologically stimulating in ways that can adversely affect your sleep. The more electronic devices a person uses in the evening, the harder it is to fall asleep or stay asleep. Using TV, tablets, smartphones, laptops or other electronic devices before bed delays your body’s internal clock, suppresses the release of sleep-inducing hormones & makes it difficult to fall asleep. Along, with increase in alertness at the time you should sleep, it, in turn, delays the onset of REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep and compromises energy levels the next morning. Over time, these effects can add up to a significant chronic deficiency in sleep.

2. Take a Lukewarm Bath Before Bed
Taking a bath or shower before bedtime is a well-known sleep remedy. This is because a warm bath can help us relax. Our body temperature tends to drop after a warm bath, which can induce better sleep. Research suggests that the best time for taking a shower is 1-2 hours before going to bed. The duration of the bath does not need to be longer than 10 min. This will improve blood circulation and stimulate “temperature circadian rhythm” helping you fall asleep, improving sleep and sleep quality.

3. Perform Deep Breathing Before Sleep
Breathing strongly influences physiology and thought processes including moods. By simply focusing your attention on your breathing and without doing anything to change it, you can move in the direction of relaxation. The 4-7-8 breathing exercise also called “the relaxing breath” promotes better sleep. Here are the steps:

  1. Exhale completely through your mouth, making a whoosh sound.
  2. Close your mouth and inhale quietly through your nose to a mental count of four.
  3. Hold your breath for a count of seven.
  4. Exhale completely through your mouth making a whoosh sound to a count of eight.
  5. This is one breath. Repeat 20 times.

4. Sleep Inducing Foods
There are certain foods which can help induce better sleep.

  • A glass of warm milk is a perfect beverage to induce sound sleep. Milk contains tryptophan, an amino acid that converts into serotonin. Serotonin is known to have soothing effects in the brain and helps you sleep well. Adding a pinch of nutmeg, cardamom and some crushed almonds will improve taste and sleep.
  • Chamomile tea: Refreshing, revitalizing and fragrant chamomile tea has soothing effects on nerves and helps induce sleep.
  • Almonds could help you support sound sleep. Almonds also contain tryptophan and magnesium which are helpful in keeping your heart rhythm steady.
  • Avoid tea, coffee, alcohol and other stimulating foods after dusk.

5. Eat Your Dinner Early
When you eat late, you are unable to sleep because of improper digestion. An early dinner is good for digestion, helps in reaching your satiety value earlier and the body is able to utilize the food better and induce sleep. Eating late at night leaves the body on a high alert state which interferes with the circadian rhythm. Minimum 2-3 hours of gap between Dinner and sleep is good.

We hope these tips help you improve sleep and sleep quality! Do leave your thoughts in the comments below.

For more on sleep, check out Healthy Reads or get these tips directly from your GOQii Coach, by subscribing for Personalised Health Coaching here.

#BeTheForce

Disclaimer: The information provided in this blog is for general awareness and educational purposes only. It is not intended to replace professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider for personalised medical guidance or concerns related to your health.

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