Inzine Issue 3 - Circadian Rhythm
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Editor's Note
One of the things I am enjoying most on the journey of creating inzine is putting together the pieces of the puzzle around our connectedness with nature (both the actual science and cultural knowledge of it). You may already be familiar with some of it, but it’s fascinating new information for me. I have learnt about how we enter a more relaxed state whenever we are exposed to anything that relates to nature, and how cortisol levels (the stress hormone) decrease when we are in a more natural environment. I’ve learnt about wabi sabi - finding peace in imperfection and following the changing seasons as a reminder that everything is always changing. I’ve learnt about biophilic design - learning to work in collaboration with nature, to look after it as it has looked after us, to respect it’s wisdom and bring natural materials into our homes to maintain our connection with it.One of the most incredible things I’ve recently stumbled upon, is about our circadian rhythm - our internal body clock - literally our brain’s connection with the earth’s rotation. Listening to this rhythm can have some some rather incredible benefits, which I dive into in this months feature.
In our fast paced and highly technological modern world, it is little wonder we are feeling more anxious and depressed - by surrounding ourselves with plastic, polluting our air and our water and constantly putting screens in front of our eyes, we increasingly ignore and deny our innate connection with nature. We are distracted by social media and the harmful expectations and comparisons we place on ourselves. Fortunately we have the information we need so we can learn from our mistakes and do better, both for ourselves and for the planet.
With this new understanding, we can use our home - our safe place - as the place where we can start to restore the balance, strengthening our connection with nature, while allowing our circadian rhythm to guide us.
-Bon Jung
Feature - circadian rhythm
Circadian rhythms are 24-hour cycles of biological processes that affect most living things, from animals and plants to humans.
It is this rhythm that helps flowers open and close and what keeps nocturnal animals from leaving their shelter. In us, it coordinates our mental and physical systems throughout our body.
It is a pattern of functions, such as hormone production, cell regeneration and brain wave activity that are involved in regulating things such as our moods, sleep and cognitive performance. What controls it is a small area in the middle of our brain called the suprachiasmatic nucleus and it resets itself every day according to the earth’s rotation.
The nucleus is also affected by our surroundings, such as temperature and light. It is highly sensitive to light, which serves as a critical external cue that influences the signals sent by our brain to coordinate the internal clocks of our body. For this reason the circadian rhythm is closely connected to light and dark and the sleep-wake cycle.
During the day when we are exposed to light this causes our master clock to send signals that generate alertness and keep us awake and active. When night falls our master clock starts the production of melatonin, a hormone that promotes sleep, it then continues to transmit signals that help us stay asleep through the night.
Our surroundings, therefore, play a very important role in keeping our rhythm in time with our daily routine so that at the end of the day we get a good night’s sleep and wake up feeling as rested, creative and productive as possible.
“Moonlight is sculpture, sunlight is painting”
- Nathaniel Hawthorne
Light tends to be the last thing that we think about when it comes to our homes, but it is possibly one of the most important when making our homes (and ourselves) feel right. When thinking about light, think about variation, texture and shadows.
Make the most of daylight - the more windows you have the better. Think about how beautiful it is when the sun hits particular rooms and treasure it. Keep windows as clear as you can to maximise the light. If the full blast of light is a bit much, or privacy is needed, think about light fabrics such as linen,cotton or blinds to allow you to diffuse the light. This allows the daylight to come in but makes it less harsh and creates lovely shadows. If you have curtains, keep them drawn clear of the windows during the day and keep your windows clean.
At night, embrace the shadows, switch those bright bulbs in rooms where task lighting is not needed to low-level warm lights (bright bulbs are intense on your eyes, it stops the production of melatonin and paralyses the imagination). To think and feel clearly, embrace the dark and the shadows. Try to avoid blanket overhead lighting, light should make you feel your best, the more sources of light, the better your mood. You could place a lamp or two in your room and light a candle, they have a beautiful effect on the room and are super flattering.
Living in an artificially-lit world, we are often cut off from the passing of the day, and the seasons. To stay in tune, don’t block out the external world. Embrace natures constantly changing light show. Light is life.
