The functions of our body are subject to a temporal rhythm, the “internal clock”. Just as the normal functions of the body are subject to diurnal variations, the disruption of these functions – i.e. illness – can also vary in severity at different times of the day.
When do symptoms of illness occur?
- For example, body temperature and also blood pressure are highest in the early afternoon, while liver blood flow is lowest then.
- The body’s own cortisone is produced mainly in the early morning hours.
- At night, blood pressure drops slightly, heart rate slows and body temperature is lowered.
- Heart attacks occur most frequently in the morning between eight and twelve o’clock.
- Asthma attacks occur more than 80 percent at night and in the early morning.
- The sensation of pain is lowest in the early afternoon – the next dental appointment should take this into account!
But also longer-term rhythms of diseases are possible. Best known example of a seasonal disease is probably the winter depression.
Our body lives according to its own internal clock. Since it is obvious that also the intervention in these daily rhythms with medicines strongly depends on the time of intake. One tablet in the morning, one at noon and one in the evening – everyone knows these instructions for taking medication. But how important is it actually to follow these rules?
Correct timing and duration of application
Most medicines must be taken at a very specific time for them to work optimally; for some medicines, the interval at which they are taken is also important. For some medications, it is critical that they be taken consistently over a period of time.
- One example is antibiotics, which must always be taken for a sufficiently long time. On the one hand, this is important for the success of the treatment, on the other hand, a possible development of resistance of pathogens should be prevented.
- Since most asthma attacks occur at night, you can best protect yourself from it by taking tablets in the evening.
- It is different with drugs for high blood pressure: blood pressure is usually higher during the day than at night. Therefore, antihypertensive drugs taken in the morning are particularly effective. Also, many patients stop taking them because they feel better. However, sudden discontinuation can be dangerous for the patient, as blood pressure can rise unnaturally high.
- Another example can be shown in patients who suffer from too much stomach acid. The stomach acid production is namely significantly higher in the evening than in the morning. In addition, during the night hours, the protective influence of food, which binds some of the acid, is absent. A remedy for too much stomach acid should therefore always be taken in the evening, some time after the last meal.
- Medications such as the mini-pill must be taken at the same time every day.
- If a medication is vomited about 20 minutes after taking it, the effect is no longer guaranteed. It may be necessary to administer a new dose.
What is the influence of food ?
But it is not only in the case of stomach remedies that meals have an influence on the effectiveness. As a rule, it is so that a drug – taken on an empty stomach – is absorbed faster and better by the body and so also the effect begins earlier. However, there are also exceptions to this rule, where the opposite is true.
In addition, it should be noted that medicines that upset the stomach, which is the case with some painkillers, for example, cause fewer problems when taken with a meal. With such complicated interrelationships, it is difficult to draw up generally applicable rules. It is best to ask your doctor or pharmacy to explain the best time to take each medication on a case-by-case basis.
