Circadian Syndrome - The New Metabolic Syndrome.
With increasing agreement among researchers that the circadian system is a major regulator of almost every aspect of human health and metabolism, the case is now being put forward that Metabolic Syndrome be renamed Circadian Syndrome in this paper just published in the Journal of Internal Medicine.
Metabolic Syndrome has known to include sleep disturbance, depression, cognitive dysfunction, fatty liver disease as contributors to chronic diseases including type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. There is now increasing evidence that these are all related to circadian disruption.
Timing will be the key to treatments for Circadian Syndrome. Timing of light exposure, timing of exercise, timing of medications, and timing of sleep will be recognized as the levers that determine our health.
Modern world conveniences such as the overuse artificial lighting, climate controlled indoor environments, abundant food supply, shift work and jet travel across time zones all contribute to type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and obesity.
The cluster of risk factors known as Metabolic Syndrome had always had some holes in it though. While there was agreement around its outcomes, cause was never clearly attributed.
Now Circadian Syndrome fills those holes with the common cause clearly identified as circadian disruption.
It’s clear that light is the biggest influence on circadian rhythm. The closer you live to nature’s cycle of light and dark, the better you will prevent cardiovascular disease, depression, insulin resistance, sleep disturbance, high blood pressure, disrupted lipid homeostasis, fatty liver, obesity and disrupted glucose homeostasis.
Living in darkness or by only firelight after sunset would be to live in sync with nature’s light/dark cycle. If you’re anything like most modern humans, that’s probably not what you’re doing though is it?
It’s inevitable that our nights at home now include LED home lighting, TV screens, computer screens, phone screens. And outside the home it’s LED streetlights, car headlights, and more. Sensors in your eyes interpret the blue wavelengths in these light frequencies as daytime, causing melatonin suppression, resulting in circadian disruption and causing Circadian Syndrome.
Using eyewear that blocks 100% of blue light wavelengths is the number one way to combat an environment of artificial light at night. Rhythm Optics eyewear does just that, bringing you closer to what would be nature’s light and dark cycle to help you prevent circadian syndrome.
Reference: The Circadian Syndrome: is the metabolic syndrome and much more!
P Zimmet K G M M Alberti N Stern C Bilu A El‐Osta H Einat N Kronfeld‐Schor
First published: 13 May 2019
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/joim.12924
