ultradian rhythms

Question 1

what are ultradian rhythms? give an example

Answer 1

a type of biological rhythm with a frequency of more than once a day such as the stages of sleep

Question 2

how many stages of sleep are there?

Answer 2

5

Question 3

how long does the sleep cycle last?

Answer 3

90 mins

Question 4

how are the stages of sleep measured?

Answer 4

using an EEG and brainwave activity

Question 5

what type of sleep occurs in stages 1&2 of the sleep cycle?

Answer 5

light sleep

Question 6

what happens in stages 1&2 of the sleep cycle?

Answer 6

The person can be easily woken. In stage 1, brain waves are high frequency and have a short amplitude. these are alpha waves. In stage 2, the alpha waves continue but there are occasional changes in pattern called sleep spindles

Question 7

what happens in stage 3 of the sleep cycle?

Answer 7

this is known as deep sleep or slow wave sleep (SWS). The brain waves are delta waves with lower frequency and higher amplitude. It is difficult to wake someone at this point

Question 8

what happens in stage 5 of the sleep cycle?

Answer 8

REM sleep. The body is paralysed yet brain activity closely resembles that of the awake brain. During this time, the brain produces theta waves and the eyes occasionally move around, thus rapid eye movement (REM). Dreams are most often experienced during rem sleep but may also occur in deep sleep.

Question 9

what is a strength of ultradian rhythms? (Age)

Answer 9

research into ultradian rhythms has improved understanding of age-related changes in sleep. Sleep scientists have observed that sis reduces with age. Growth hormones are mostly produced during SWS therefore this is reduced in older people. The resulting sleep deficit may cause other issues such as reduced alertness. In order to increase SWS, medication may be used. this suggests that knowledge of ultradian rhythms has practical value

Question 10

what is a limitation of ultradian rhythms? (Variation)

Answer 10

there is significant variation between people. Ppt who have taken part in sleep studies have shown large differences in terms of duration of each sleep stage. these are likely to be biologically determined. This makes it difficult to describe “normal sleep” in any meaningful way