It is common for sleep disturbances to occur and for irritability, apathy and anxiety to surface
Winter time is knocking at the door and next Sunday, at dawn from October 29 to 30, the Spaniards will change the time of their clocks: on the peninsula, at 3:00 it will be 2:00 and, in the Canary Islands, one hour less.
Although, at first, it may seem that 60 minutes is not too long, this change is enough to keep us a little out of place for several days, especially if we are dealing with children or older people: changes in sleep pattern, moodiness, apathy, anxiety… Why? The answer lies in our circadian rhythms.
Synchronize our biological clock
“Circadian rhythms are biological cycles that last close to 24 hours and are the product of the biological clock that synchronizes these rhythms (for example, renal function, the plasma concentration of hormones such as melatonin or cortisol, or the wake-wake cycle). sleep) with the external environment (for example, the light-dark cycle, meal times or social time),” explains Maria Jose Collado Mateo, Doctor in Psychology and co-director of the Cuarto de Cuentas center in Leganés.
“Children’s biological clocks can take several days, even a week, to adjust, causing disturbances in wakefulness and sleep, appetite disorder, irritability, attention problems or minor disturbances of cardiovascular rhythm“, says Gonzalo Pin, member of the Spanish Association of Pediatrics.
The pediatrician recalls that the body has an internal central clock “which is regulated by sunlight and environmental stimuli, such as eating and physical activity schedules. This internal core clock sets a daily cycle that affects hormone levels and our entire body, so when the rhythm of external light or the rhythm of tasks changes, it can become disoriented.”
Recommendations so that children do not suffer from the time change:
1. Slow down progressively, a week before the time change occurs, routine activities such as eating, sleeping or playing, in intervals of 10 or 15 minutes, to make the transition smoother. Must progressively delay routine activities in 10- or 15-minute intervals
For example, if your child goes to bed at 8:00 a.m., try to put him to sleep for two days at 8:15 p.m., then add a quarter of an hour more for two days and so on progressively until win an hour and put him to bed at 9:00 p.m.. On the contrary, the next morning, wake him up a quarter of an hour later, progressively until he wakes up an hour later.
2. Take a short nap during the days after the time change to help children turn back their biological clock so they can stay awake until the new bedtime.
3. Exercise in the late afternoon favors the rapid adjustment of the biological clock of children.
4. Prevent light from penetrating the little one’s room with curtains or blinds. If the body detects sunlight, it sends the signal to our brain that it is daytime and we must be active. Therefore, your child is more likely to wake up.
5. If it is a smaller baby, it is better don’t rush to his call when he wakes up. Wait 10 minutes on the first day, then 20 minutes, and on the third day another 10 minutes. By the end of the week, you will have gotten used to this new schedule and You will wake up again at the usual time.