Broadly speaking, there are two types of people in the world. One that retires to bed early and wakes up even before the alarm goes off and the other that sleeps late and wakes up late in the morning. My grandfather belongs to the former category. He is in bed by 9:30 pm and up by 5 am. I am nothing like my grandfather; I am a late riser. So, it is quite ironic for me to explore the benefits of waking up early.
It is not that late risers like me are unaware of the benefits of rising with the sun. It is just that we are not people who are used to the ‘rise and shine’ kind of routine. Though my grandfather has been telling me about the positive changes one can witness by waking up early, for the last 20 years, I have not been able to forgo my precious morning sleep.
They say old habits die hard. But this time, I have consciously decided to cultivate the good habit of waking up early, for its benefits are simply mind-blowing. Through this article, I hope to encourage fellow late risers to explore the benefits of rising with the sun and make life-altering positive changes.
Synchronised circadian rhythm
The body clock is designed in such a way that it is in sync with the sunrise and sunset. This synchronisation can be achieved when our sleep-wake cycle is regulated. It is called the circadian rhythm. In simple terms, it is the body’s biological clock that is affected by darkness and light.
Alternative medicine proponent Dr. Joseph Mercola explains how we can work around our sleep-wake cycle in his book Dark Deception: Discover the Truths About the Benefits of Sunlight Exposure. Dr. Mercola recommends going to bed early and sleeping in complete darkness, as it stimulates the secretion of the antioxidant-rich hormone melatonin, which induces sleep. He says an hour’s exposure to mild UVB rays of the early morning sun will do the trick. Sunlight, he writes, stimulates the secretion of serotonin. This hormone in turn keeps us energetic and happy. Further, Dr. Mercola explains that the more we are exposed to the early morning sun, the better we would sleep at night. This is because the serotonin produced during the day is converted to melatonin at night.
Once our sleep cycle is set, the circadian rhythm automatically synchronises with nature. And when that happens, we experience physiological and psychological wellbeing. Dr. Mercola writes that adequate synthesis of melatonin and serotonin plays a key role in regulating our digestion, reproductive health, body temperature, immune system and even blood sugar and blood pressure levels. In addition, it helps us maintain a balanced emotional state and improves our mood.
Organ repair and recovery
The second interesting reason to wake up early comes from the ancient discipline of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). According to TCM, every organ in the human body has a particular time when it repairs and restores itself.
TCM expert Dr. Helen H Hu in her book Chinese Food Therapy Rx For Selfing Healing (Volume II): Beauty and Longevity presents a detailed account of timings when various organs repair and restore. She says we should shut down and start relaxing as early as 7 pm. Ideally, there should be no outside communication between 9 pm and 11 pm. So, when the gallbladder and the liver begin to repair themselves from 11 pm to 3 am (thereby increasing the concentration of bile in our systems), we would be sound asleep. Deep sleep, Dr. Hu asserts, is a prerequisite for thorough cleansing and detoxification of the gallbladder and the liver.
Activities such as chanting, deep breathing and sun salutations further stimulate the pineal gland, which is the storehouse of antioxidant-loaded happiness hormones melatonin and serotonin.
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine waking up early has several benefits, including synchronizing the body’s circadian rhythm, and promoting organ repair and recovery.
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, different organs have specific times for repair and restoration. Waking up early allows the body to undergo thorough cleansing and detoxification processes, enhancing physiological wellbeing.
Waking up during the pre-dawn phase, is believed to be conducive to spiritual practices such as chanting and meditation. This period, characterized by positive energies, facilitates the activation of the pineal gland or the third eye, leading to spiritual awakening.
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