Are We Ready to Implement Circadian Hygiene Interventions and Programs?

Abstract

Circadian hygiene, a concept not to be confused with the notion of public or social hygiene, should be discussed among experts and society. Light–dark cycles and other possible synchronizers of the human circadian timing system affect ways of life, including sleeping, eating, working and physical activity. Some of these behaviors have also been investigated individually as synchronizers (e.g., eating times). Therefore, the knowledge held today about circadian rhythms, and their implications for health, allows future perspectives in this field to be mapped. The present article summarizes the latest knowledge on factors influencing circadian rhythms to discuss a perspective for the future of health promotion based on circadian hygiene. However, it is important to highlight that circadian hygiene is the product of an imbrication of individual and societal involvement. First, it is important to adopt practices and devise public health policies in line with circadian hygiene. Second, individual healthy habits require internal rhythms to be examined. Last, the research agenda on circadian hygiene can be developed on a public as well as individual level, raising the question as to how much society is willing to embrace this change.

Circadian disruption, clock genes, and metabolic health

“…It may also be important to emphasize that shift work is not always synonymous with circadian desynchrony. One can predict the existence of many shift workers with appropriate circadian hygiene that allows alignment of the timing of nutrient intake with internal physiologic processes ( 88 ). The challenge lies in how to disentangle those components of circadian misalignment contributing to poor human health, given the potential for synergy, additivity, or antagonism for a spectrum of prevalent disruptors such as extended timing of food intake (i.e., eating outside the active phase) and extended exposure to light at night (screen time) intertwined with poor sleep habits.…”

Evaluating the Relationship between Circadian Rhythms and Sleep, Metabolic and Cardiovascular Disorders: Current Clinical Evidence in Human Studies

“…The concept of circadian hygiene can be useful for implementing interventions and programs in different settings. Broader than the concept of sleep hygiene, circadian hygiene-based interventions and programs would have to take into account necessary changes in every aspect of social life [ 81 , 82 ]. Understanding the underlying mechanisms that regulate circadian rhythm may provide insights into circadian physiology and advance novel chronotherapy approaches and therapeutic targets for metabolic disorders [ 83 , 84 , 85 ].…”

The Control Method for Wavelength-Based CCT of Natural Light Using Warm/Cool White LED

“…As a result, the criteria for circadian lighting were ambiguous. In addition, although many studies have emphasized the connection between human circadian rhythms and the spectral power distribution (SPD) of natural light, there are technical limitations to reproducing the SPD of natural light through artificial light [9][10].…”