03.08.2023 **Tags** #areas/reading #areas/sleep #areas/biology #areas/fitness #areas/health # The Circadian Rhythm The circadian rhythm is one of the two main factors controlling tiredness and wakefulness, besides adenosine. While adenosine builds up continuously, the circadian rhythm is synced to the day-and-night cycle of 24 hours. ## Chronotypes The peaks and bottoms of the circadian rhythms are spread out through society. About 40% of people are naturally waking up early in the morning, while about 30% naturally wake up much later, some as late as in the afternoon. The remaining 30% are located in between the first two groups. Chronotypes are predetermined genetically and have evolutionary reasons - a tribe that has members awake both at night and during the day can minimize the amount of time the group is left unguarded, significantly increasing the chances of survival. ## Social Implications In many areas, modern society has standardized a rule to wake up early. For instance, the default time to start school in Germany around 8:00. Waking up early is generally seen as "more productive" while people waking up late are more likely to be seen as "lazy", even though there is absolutely no correlation between productivity and the time waking up. Therefore, we must become more flexible when organizing time frames of productivity - school and work - so that people are not forced to wake up and do mentally/physically demanding work during a time when their body needs them to sleep. ## Personal Opinion My best time to wake up is between 8:00 and 9:00 and to go to bed around midnight. In high school, I had to wake up as early as 6:30, to be on time with waking up, breakfast and going to school. I've had massive issues with staying awake during the first couple of hours. I was sleep deprived, and my body outright refused to stay awake. On some occasions, I even fell asleep during a lesson. I tried to counter that with caffeine from black coffee with sugar and energy drinks, with less than mediocre success. At the same time, I wasn't able to fall asleep in the evening, starting from 22:00. I would lay in bed stare into the darkness. I would try to listen to music, to meditate, I even tried self hypnosis. All of those things were merely a distraction, I was a slave to my own circadian rhythm, absolutely not in sync with the school day. It usually took 1-2 hours for me to fall asleep, just to get woken from it way too early again. Personally, I think my time in high school, between the age of 12 and 19, has been the most unhealthy time of my entire life! Today, I am free to decide from when to when I work, as long as I get my work done and attend the required meetings. Needless to say, I feel much more awake during the day, have a much easier time to fall asleep (today it takes 5-15 minutes). In conclusion, I think we should talk about this and make the start of school more flexible. If school started later, students who wake up early could do homework, prepare lessons or even enjoy free time (I mean, why not?) before school while everyone gets enough sleep. At the same time, work hours would also have to be at least equally flexible, considering parents who have to take their children to school. Considering the negative effects of sleep deprivation, my hypothesis would be that this would generally lead to a more healthy and productive society. # References [[Why We Sleep - Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams]]