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Every individual has daily, weekly, monthly and seasonal biological
rhythms. Very vital substances in our bodies called hormones set
this rhythm. Activities of cells, glands, tissues and various organ
systems are perfectly synchronized with one another and with the day
- night rhythm of the environment. This can be shown as follows.
Consider a healthy person who is active during the day. Such a
person’s body temperature varies about three degrees in a
twenty-four hour period - being lowest when he is asleep and highest
around the afternoon and evening.
Biological clock and its effects on a person's health conditions
Symptoms of many diseases follow biological patterns. For example,
the likelihood of a heart attack is more in the morning, while an
attack of asthma is more likely to occur in the evening or night.
Chronopathology is that branch of biology that deals with the
study of the influence biological rhythms exert on human diseases.
On similar lines, the effect of medication for such diseases is to
quite an extent is influenced by circadian rhythms (circadian
rhythms are those followed by vital body processes on the basis of a
day - night cycle). The branch of biology dealing with the study of
biological rhythms and medications is called chronopharmacology.
Biological rhythms in other living organisms
Most living organisms have internal cycles called “biological
rhythms”, controlled by biological clocks. The rhythm for a
particular species is perfectly timed to enable each organism to
efficiently meet the demands of its surrounding environment.
Hibernation, migration and breeding cycles in animals are
coordinated
by these biological clocks. Some species follow a daily rhythm where
the day - night cycle is broken into regular periods of activity and
rest. Most species of monkeys, bees and birds are active during the
day and rest at night. However, a great number of insects, bats,
owls and cats are active at night. They are, in fact, called
nocturnal creatures.
Plants too exhibit biological rhythms. Green plants, for example,
turn their leaves towards light during the day when they perform
photosynthesis and lower them at night when they perform only
respiration.
It is interesting to note that biological rhythms are so sensitive
that they are automatically reset and adjusted to suit changing
environmental conditions. They are so perfectly scheduled that they
maintain accurate time not only over a twenty-four hour period, but
also over days, weeks, months and years! |
