Why our bodies crave more sleep in the winter

These cold winter months leave us with short days and what feels like endless nights. The alarm goes off early in the morning, it’s still dark out and we are so toasty under the covers. The motivation to get out of bed is close to none, but why is that?  

Our bodies have internal clocks on a 24-hour cycle called a circadian rhythm that dictates physical and mental behaviours throughout the day, which is mainly influenced by light and dark.³ How long we sleep depends on how long we are exposed to light. The longer the day the less sleep we need, the shorter the day, the more sleep our bodies crave.² With the sun setting as early as 5pm and rising as late as 8am, it’s no wonder we struggle to get out of bed in the winter.  

Reduced exposure to sunlight and colder weather can affect our sleep pattern, making it harder for people to get up in the morning.¹ We yearn for that long winter’s nap and though we may not feel it, our brains are buzzing when we’re asleep. We start off with a light sleep (non-REM), and after about an hour, we switch to REM sleep, aka rapid eye movement, where dreams are made of.^4,5 A study found that humans have longer deep sleeps (REM) in the winter compared to the summer.² A good night’s rest ensures that we are recharging our bodies, strengthening our immune system, and supporting brain function. 

It’s not just light exposure and temperature that can affect sleep, it can also be the level of stress we experience throughout the day. Many people believe that their sleep disturbances can be helped with a nighttime sleep aid formula. Interestingly, it’s during the day that we need to balance our stress levels, which will subsequently give you a more restorative sleep.  

We launched a saffron based formula to help combat stress naturally throughout the day, and if you have not tried it, this is the perfect time. The unique formula was created to help you manage and reduce common symptoms of stress such as fatigue, weariness and irritability. Each dose contains saffron (Affron®) plus adaptogenic (stress-supporting) Ashwagandha (KSM-66 Ashwagandha®) and Passionflower extract to help promote feelings of relaxation, while encouraging restorative sleep. With consistent use, every capsule will help you cope with life’s challenges with more ease and build long-term resilience to both mental and physical stress.   

For those who need additional support at night, Genuine Health has formulated the perfect deep sleep product.  It combines the power of reishi mushrooms along with magnesium, GABA, l-theanine, and a low dose of melatonin to help you with your sleep, plus you don’t wake up groggy! Reishi is an adaptogenic and gut boosting mushroom that relieves stress, has been shown to decrease time it takes to fall asleep, increase sleeping time and improve quality of sleep. Magnesium helps you stay calm. GABA and L-theanine work synergistically to support sleep by signaling the brain (via the gut) to lower stress and enhancing alpha wave activity in the brain to support restorative sleep. To round off the formula, we’ve added perfect dose of non-habit-forming melatonin helps to balance the circadian rhythm. 

Sleep is always important, as it supports both healthy brain function and physical health. Make sure you get adequate sleep throughout the winter when our bodies need it most! 

1. Wams, E. J., Woelders, T., Marring, I., van Rosmalen, L., Beersma, D. G. M., Gordijn, M. C. M., et al. (2017). Linking light exposure and subsequent sleep: A field polysomnography study in humans. Sleep 40:zsx doi: 10.1093/sleep/zsx165

2. Seidler A, Weihrich KS, Bes F, de Zeeuw J, Kunz D. Seasonality of human sleep: Polysomnographic data of a neuropsychiatric sleep clinic. Front Neurosci. 2023 Feb 17;17:1105233. doi: 10.3389/fnins.2023.1105233. PMID: 36875666; PMCID: PMC9981644.

3. Reddy S, Reddy V, Sharma S. Physiology, Circadian Rhythm. 2023 May 1. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023 Jan–. PMID: 30137792.

4. Blumberg, Mark S., et al. "What is REM sleep?." Current biology 30.1 (2020): R38-R49.

5. Lan, K. Tsuzuki, Y.F. Liu, Z.W. Lian, Thermal environment and sleep quality: A review, Energy and Buildings, Volume 149, 2017, Pages 101-113, ISSN 0378-7788, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2017.05.043.