There are plenty of things to love about autumn: spending less, colourful leaves, the guilt-free excuse to curl up on the sofa and binge a TV show and home-cooked meals.
But what’s not so great is the lack of energy many people feel as the days get shorter and the nights grow longer, making it harder to stay awake and focused during the working week.
While the seemingly endless evenings of summer have a tendency to energise us, encouraging us to stay out and socialise in the pub, autumn nights can do the opposite, making us less able to go about our day-to-day activities with the same fortitude.
So what exactly is driving this seasonal fatigue? And more importantly, what can you do to remedy it?
We asked GPs to unpack why you might be feeling zapped of energy right now, along with some simple ways to naturally restore some spring to your step.
Why does autumn fatigue happen?
If you’ve been feeling a little off-kilter during the final days of summer, you’re not imagining it. “We tend to see a big spike in people visiting their GP at this time of year, with people complaining about feeling more tired than usual,” says Dr Nasir Hannan, GP at The London General Practice.
“There are many theories as to why this happens,” he continues. “A current area of research is the impact that natural light has on our energy levels and our circadian rhythm, the body’s natural clock that regulates and sleep and wake cycles. As light levels reduce during the darker autumn months, researchers believe it can have a big effect on our wellbeing.”
The theory is that when it’s dark outside and there are fewer daylight hours, your brain produces more melatonin, the sleep hormone that helps us to drift off at night. Too much of this hormone can leave you feeling drowsier than usual, especially at times of the day when you’d usually feel alert and awake.
“Added to this, sunlight also triggers the production of serotonin, a neurotransmitter that regulates our mood and sleep,” Hannan adds.
This overproduction of melatonin, coupled with a lack of serotonin in the body, is thought to contribute to seasonal affective disorder (or SAD), a form of winter-based depression linked to changes to the weather.
Symptoms of SAD include:
“Patients struggling with seasonal affective disorder tend to trickle in right after hay fever season ends, which just goes to show how cyclical human health can be.”
5 ways to feel less tired during autumn
Take five simple steps to feel less tired during the autumn months, when the days shorten. (Getty Images)
You don’t have to rely on the office coffee machine to get through the darker days. Try these expert-backed tips to put a little more pep in your step.
🏃 Don’t neglect your training plan
Getting outside for a workout can be harder when it’s dark and wet, but maintaining a consistent exercise routine can help you beat the post-summer slump.
Not only does moving increase feel-good dopamine levels in your body, but studies have found that people tend to feel more invigorated and alert after a good workout because exertion encourages your body to produce more energy-boosting mitochondria inside your muscle cells.
“If you struggle with the motivation to stay active when the seasons switch, try something smaller and more repeatable, like a quick living room workout,” says Dr Suhail Hussain, a Doctify-rated GP. “Even micro bursts of exercise (think squats, lunges and wall sits) between meetings and tasks can help.”
He adds: “Making exercise part of your autumn routine often means shifting your focus from outdoor runs and activities to indoor gym circuits or treadmill running.”
🛌 Get an early night
Quality sleep is the bedrock of energy, as it’s during deeper non-REM sleep that our body undergoes a roster of restorative functions.
Throughout the day, glycogen (known as the brain’s energy reserve) gradually decreases, while adenosine, a natural chemical that builds up during wakefulness, accumulates and triggers feelings of sleepiness. A full night’s rest restores our flagging glycogen and clears out adenosine, creating a feedback loop that keeps us feeling in check.
“Sleep is the most powerful tool we have for improving our energy in autumn,” says Hussain. “During the autumn months, investing in blackout curtains, removing all digital screens an hour before bed and keeping your room cool and calm can help you to drift off more easily.”
🌅 Let there be light
When it’s dark outside, it’s tempting to snooze your alarm and roll straight from bed to your laptop, but Hussain recommends getting outside into the sun’s rays as soon as you can.
“Early morning sunlight is very beneficial for resetting your body clock and encouraging the production of energy-supporting serotonin,” he notes. “The body also manufactures vitamin D from direct sunlight on the skin, which plays a key role in supporting both our mood and energy.”
If it’s miserable weather outside, Hannan suggests you give yourself a blast of mood-boosting energy by investing in a SAD lamp. “There’s good evidence to suggest that light therapy can combat the effects of seasonal affective disorder,” he says.
These specially-designed tools are around 10 times the intensity of a normal domestic light – around 5,00 to 10,000 lux – helping to inhibit the production of sleep hormones that can dampen our mood.
Light boxes that mimic sunlight may help reduce symptoms of SAD. (Getty Images)
🍲 Eat seasonally
Eating for the seasons is a diet strategy that involves buying fruits and vegetables that are naturally in harvest in your local area, rather than leaning on varieties that have been shipped from other countries.
“Eating bananas or strawberries in December, or mangoes in winter, isn’t seasonal, as they’ve often been flown from afar and chemically preserved to stay fresh on the supermarket shelves,” says Hussain.
“Shopping in alignment with the seasons is not only cheaper and better for the environment, but foods tend to be fresher and more nutritious, which means we reap more energy-supporting nutrients when we digest them in the gut.”
Alongside seasonal plant foods, Hussain recommends adding more complex carbohydrates to your plate, such as wholemeal bread, pasta and rice, which release energy slowly and take time to digest – meaning you’re less likely to experience an unpleasant 3pm slump.
💊 Add three supplements
Creatine is a supplement that’s often used by gym buffs to build muscle, but emerging research suggests it may have hidden benefits for our mood and cognition.
As an organic compound, it’s produced naturally within the liver, kidneys and pancreas and is housed in both the muscles and brain in the body.
Several studies have found that supplementing creatine can increase something called your phosphocreatine stores, which allows you to produce more energy to fuel your muscles for day-to-day activities.
“Creatine is a really beneficial supplement, and not just for people who are trying to build muscle at the gym,” says Hussain. While generally considered safe for most healthy adults, people with kidney disease or digestive issues should consult their GP before adding it into their routine.
“Vitamin B12 is another key supplement that might be beneficial for some people to take in the autumn, as low levels can cause tiredness and fatigue,” he adds.
Finally, it’s advisable to take a vitamin D supplement between the darker months of September to March.
In the UK, winter sunlight doesn’t contain enough UVB radiation for our skin to manufacture vitamin D, and deficiency (which is fairly widespread) can have a knock-on effect on our energy levels, so it’s always worth topping up when the nights start drawing in earlier.
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