Is Early Rising Healthy?

How long do you sleep?

Is your sleeping quality good?

Recently, it is a fashion that wake up at 4am in the early morning in Japan.

Many companies were done "daylight saving time" in this summer in there (not government issue).

One of the reasons was by the stopping some nuclear power plants by tsunami.

Since long time ago, they say "wake up early and sleep early for health".

However there are some questions for waking up at 4am.


Nearly 90% of people need to sleep 6 to 9 hours every night.

If you sleep only 5 hours every night but sleep way longer in your day off, which indicates 5 hours are not enough to your body.

The people who sleep 6 to 9 hours are named "valuable sleeper".

To wake up 4am, valuable sleepers need go to bed 7pm ~ 10pm.

I do not think it is possible for most people.

If you are "short sleeper" whose body needs less than 6 hours sleep a night, maybe possible.

However, less than 5 hours short sleepers are less than 1% of population.


Early rising may affect your allergy.

Cortisone is secreted in early morning (2nd half of sleep).

Cortisone is an anti-inflammatory and promotes immune system.

So cortisone loses chance to be secreted if you wake up in short time.

Less secretion of cortisone induces allergic reaction for mites and molds.

And it accelerates atopic dermatitis and pollinosis (allergy to pollen).

So you better not shorten your sleeping time too much.


A data shows complains of sleep disorder.
Normal sift:     start working 8am
Early sift:     start working 6am
Complains of sleep disorder: 4~5 times more than normal sift
Feeling lack of rest: 4.5 times more than normal sift
Sleeping time: 75% of normal sift
Night sift:     start working 11pm
Complains of sleep disorder: 5~6 times more than normal sift
Feeling lack of rest: 6.7 times more than normal sift
Sleeping time: 57% of normal sift

The early sift in this data need to wake up around 4am because they start to work at 6am.

Body temperature drops to lowest in around 4am.

You will feel strong sleepiness after woke up.

Only 2 hours, but that is big bad influence to your body.

Do you still want to wake up early?

I suggest:

1. You need set up the wake up time for weekend too.
If you sleep short but in weekend, that messes up your biological clock.

2. Check the time of sunrise.
Even if you slept enough time but it is still difficult to wake up for your body before sunlight.
Human body is synchronizing in many points with nature.


"Trying to wake up early for your health, which made you sick".

It is so foolish.

Do not try too much.

Wake up little bit earlier and have little bit extra fun.


Old Chinese book says:
Wake up early, sleep late in the spring.
Wake up early, sleep late in the summer.
Wake up early, sleep early in the autumn.
Wake up late, sleep early in the winter

This book was written more than a thousand years ago when electric power did not exist.

So either early and late are so-so.

By the way,

Acupuncture works for sleeping disorder in general (unless you are trying to cut off too much sleeping time).

If you are in trouble with that, give me a call, text, e-mail or comment below.

Sobakawa Pillow

This pillow is the best for me.

by Dr. Kazu Watanabe

I posted about sleeping at May 12th 2011 too.

Do you remember it?

Go visit the page again(*^ーﾟ)b♪