Winter and the pineal

The once thought vestigial part of the brain, called the pineal gland is actually very important. Vestigial means, no longer used from an evolutionary point of view. We know animals hibernate to conserve energy over winter when there is limited food sources. Not an issue in Australia perhaps.The pineal gland tracks the daylight hours to switch our brains in and out of sleep, as well as hibernation. It also uses many other clues to 'know' the time of day and the season of year to make adjustments in our responses to our environment which seem automatic to us. On a rainy day it will adjust to the difference in light by cloud cover, even if we only hear the rain. It has learned to cope with electric lights which give a false sense about daylight.
Interesting.
Important because the pineal gland seems to malfunction in depression. It stops people switching off for sleep or increases sleep in depression. In fact this sleep disorder could be the cause of all the other symptoms of depression like abnormal eating and sex drive patterns; lack of motivation and energy. Depression seems to be a process of hibernation triggered by the pineal gland often in response to stress that it may be better to withdraw from.
So in winter when we are more likely to sleep or hibernate, we are more likely to suffer depression. There is evidence for increased rates of new diagnosis and recurrent episodes of depression in winter, even in Australia where the daylight hours are not so changed in winter as other parts of the world. SAD, acronym for seasonal affective disorder, occurs in the polar extremes, well North Pole where more humans live. Every winter these people have depression and this is treated by a wide brimmed hat with lights attached. Turning them on before the sun goes down to trick the pineal gland into thinking it is still daylight, prevents the winter depression.
So as you shiver under the blankets and tuck into comfort food these cold mornings, pay homage to your pineal gland.