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Russell G. Foster

Rhythms of Life: The Biological Clocks that Control the Daily Lives of Every Living Thing Hardcover – August 11, 2004

by Russell G. Foster (Author), Leon Kreitzman (Author)

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Why can’t teenagers get out of bed in the morning? How do bees tell the time? Why do some plants open and close their flowers at the same time each day? Why do so many people suffer the misery of jet lag? In this fascinating book, Russell Foster and Leon Kreitzman explain the significance of the biological clock, showing how it has played an essential role in evolution and why it continues to play a vitally important role in all living organisms.

The authors tell us that biological clocks are embedded in our genes and reset at sunrise and sunset each day to link astronomical time with an organism’s internal time. They discuss how scientists are working out the clockwork mechanisms and what governs them, and they describe how organisms measure different intervals of time, how they are adapted to various cycles, and how light coordinates the time within to the external world. They review problems that can be caused by malfunctioning biological clocks—including jet lag, seasonal affective disorder, and depression. And they warn that although new drugs are being promoted to allow us to stay awake for longer periods, a 24/7 lifestyle can have a harmful impact on our health, both as individuals and as a society.

Print length

288 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Yale University Press
Publication date

August 11, 2004
Dimensions

6.5 x 1.25 x 9.5 inches
ISBN-10

0300105746
ISBN-13

978-0300105742
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Are you a morning "lark" or a "night owl"? Do you put your feet up after lunch, or can you get by on a few hours' sleep? Foster, a professor of molecular neuroscience in London, and Kreitzman (The 24 Hour Society) survey the biological clocks that dictate circadian rhythms, the daily cycles that affect creatures from cockroaches to humans. A little bundle of nerve cells in the front of the brain called the suprachiasmatic nuclei is responsible for many circadian functions in mammals. Other controls may be embedded in our genes. The authors explain that all living creatures run on several different biological clocks simultaneously: some make it possible for us to recognize the passage of short intervals of time, whereas others (in the retina) respond to light and regulate our bodily functions over 24 hours and even longer cycles. Your very perception of time depends on your body temperature, which varies by almost one degree Celsius during the course of a day. In their final chapters, the authors explain that the very efficacy of medication for many diseases, notably cancer, depends on when it is administered. Biology buffs will marvel at the fascinating material, and medical professionals should put the book at the top of their must-read lists.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

“This intriguing and highly detailed account of circadian rhythms takes us through the research that has been done on many species to show how they learned to optimise time to greatest effect.”—Jo Revill, The Observer

“Despite 40 years of research and several lines of evidence, awareness of chronotherapy is still low in the medical and pharmaceutical world. Perhaps this book will start changing that.”—Scotland on Sunday

Product information

Technical Details

Publisher

‎Yale University Press; 1st edition (August 11, 2004)

Language

‎English

Hardcover

‎288 pages

ISBN-10

‎0300105746

ISBN-13

‎978-0300105742

Item Weight

‎1.35 pounds

Dimensions

‎6.5 x 1.25 x 9.5 inches

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Customer reviews

5 star		56%
4 star		18%
3 star		13%
2 star		9%
1 star		4%

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Top reviews from the United States

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Historical Intro to Circadian Rhythms

Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2018

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I bought the ebook for $9.99. In my view, it was a great deal as I have a kindle and sometimes read on my laptop. The book is an introduction into the circadian rhythms, describing the story and the scientists that started to discover key mechanisms in plants and mice. At first the book doesn't seem scientific as it mainly recounts anecdotal stories about history and interesting facts. By chapter 8 and on, the book details the biology clock present in the suprachiasmatic nucleus and the connections between it and the brain. To sum up, this book is a fitting introduction for those who enjoy reading the backstory behind the discovery of circadian rhythms.

One person found this helpful

Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2020

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This book is very interesting. It's so engaging that it's hard to put it down. It was delivered to me fast, I am very satisfied.

One person found this helpful

Too dry and inapplicable to daily life

Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2010

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I had bought this book because the author had written a number of interesting editorials in the New York Times (or at least the version I read, the International Herald Tribune), and I also have a strong interest in Chinese medicine, which had already incorporated the body clock into its account of the body many hundreds of years before. For instance talk about the Qi flowing strongly in the large intestine from 5-7am, the heart from 11am to 1pm, the lungs at 3 to 5am.

However I found this book to be overly dry and academic, delving deep into the mechanics of how certain circadian rhthyms work in different animals (spending an inordinate amount of time writing about trying to figure out where the body clock is located in the body or the cells), but does not step back and address some of the bigger picture issues I was interested in

- like what time is optimum to exercise?
- what is the optimum time to eat?
- what are the effects of the tides on the human body / mestruation ?
- is there any basis to the Chinese body clock compared to the scientific research that was highlighted in the book
- how does aligning ourselves with the sunrise and sunset contribute to our health (i.e. should we be staying up late until midnight and what health effects would there be long term)
- why are there different bodily effects during different times of the day (what is the biological /evolutionary reason for these effects)

I found none of these things or passing reference in the text. I understand that this is an introduction to a burgeoning field, but it would have been more interesting if the book had tried to address some of these issues for the lay reader instead of the purely biologically or scientifically minded.

11 people found this helpful

Circadian physiology

Reviewed in the United States on January 11, 2019

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Again, one of the authors is the discoverer of the Circadian Clock's light detection cells. An earlier book, but excellent and covers sleep and wake rhythms in a fascinating way.

Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2017

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Another brilliant book and facts, about the cosmic rhythms. I do recommend, more information anyone can digest. Great info.

Amazon Customer

Reviewed in the United States on May 2, 2017

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very informative with strong references

james c kostelni

Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2018

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Moderately

Reviewed in the United States on November 2, 2016

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Great overview.

Top reviews from other countries

Busker

Excellent read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 29, 2019

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The authors have produced a very readable book on a subject of real relevance in our modern era. We have become detached from daily rhythms that our ancestors lived by. We have altered our world by modern ‘improvements’ such as shift work, electric light, central heating, international travel through time zones. This book helps us to know why we are often ‘out of sorts’. GPs and other medics should read this and understand that what makes us unwell can’t always be treated with a pill. Maybe we just need to look at the rhythms of our life.

Nikki

Very comprehensive

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 9, 2020

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I did not expect the context of information I received. Although it is a good book, I felt that it was better suited for someone with an In-depth knowledge of the circadian clock.
I’m still looking for a book on the circadian clock that is informative but not too intense.

One person found this helpful

Tommy steele

Very detailed and interesting update on circadian rhythms

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 11, 2020

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Parts can be a bit distressing .....details of animal and bird experiments. Those can be skipped without loosing the gist.
Essential for learning how to reset your time clock and how important it is.

Nellie

Hard work

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 8, 2019

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Very interested in this topic but found this book too detailed full of info on animal experiments I found a disturbing and more academic than I wanted, I much preferred the The Circadian Code by Satchin Panda recently published much more accessible and up to date

One person found this helpful

Richard Wise

Excellent science

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 18, 2013

Verified Purchase

I have heard Russell Foster lecture, which led me to buy this book. He is a neuroscientist who is master at communicating the fascination of his research. A great read.

4 people found this helpful

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