Scientists have discovered that our internal body clocks are shaped by the weather and the different seasons, BBC News reported.
A team of researchers from Edinburgh University used computers to model the workings of internal biological clocks in human test subjects.
The study helped determine that the internal clock mechanism is very complicated because it is able to deal with varying amounts of light from hour to hour, as well as changing seasons.
The team hopes that their findings may benefit research studies attempting to solve sleep problems caused by jet lag and shift working.
The discoveries also offer a better understanding of what drives the internal rhythms of people, animals and plants.
Experts also determined that environmental signals, such as hours of daylight, affect the daily rhythms that many plants use to control the flowering and ripening process.
Scientists might even be able to develop crops that can cope with climate change in the future.
The study also involved researchers from the California Institute of Technology and the University of Warwick.
“By better understanding why biological clocks are so complex, we stand a better chance of controlling them,” said Dr Carl Troein of the University of Edinburgh’s School of Biological Sciences.
He added that the study goes some way to explaining how and why these in-built rhythms have developed over time.
“We hope it will be useful in informing treatments for sleep disorders as well as helping scientists develop crops that can survive in the long term,” he said.
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