THE DIURNAL RHYTHM OF FUNCTIONS OF HUMANS IN CONDITIONS OF LIMITED MOBILITY,

The diurnal rhythm of mans physiological functions is a complex reaction that developed in the process of phylogenic and ontogenic adaptation of living organisms to the conditions of vital activity on earth. According to certain of the literature it is inborn. It appears sharply in the second year of life and becomes more expressed as the individuals age increases. In adults it is relatively stable. Certain experiments were performed in which certain individuals were suspended in water and other were kept in chairs and indulged in various activities without strong physical exertion. When man is subjected to prolonged immobility the ordinary diurnal rhythm of the body temperature changes. The diurnal variations become less expressed in a number of cases at night, a rise in body temperature was observed instead of a drop, and in the daytime it was reduced. The body temperature stays at one level for a long time, but its changes have a step-wise character. The curves of the body temperature diurnal variations for the same subject had different configurations during different days of the experiment. Under conditions of limited mobility the diurnal variations of the pulse rate and the maximal blood pressure became less expressed. The change in the diurnal variations of the pulse and respiration rates and blood pressure under conditions of limited mobility is less expressed than the change in the diurnal variations of the body temperature. The diurnal changes in the pulse and respiration rates also do not always repeat the diurnal body temperature changes. Author