Day & Night

They say that timing is everything. And when we look at the science behind how our bodies operate, it’s a proclamation that explains a whole lot.

Simply speaking, our brain, organs and cells are all keeping time, operating on a schedule governed by an uncountable number of internal, synchronized clocks set to a 24-hour cycle that’s marked by the rotation of the earth. These are our circadian rhythms, a likely familiar term that refers to when we should sleep and when to wake. Proof, essentially, that our connection to the environment runs deep, our biology intimately tied to the cadence of a day, the seasons, the universe. It’s an astounding, mind-boggling feat of engineering.

While the notion of living in accordance to the sun’s rising and setting is by no means new – it’s how we all existed for hundreds of thousands of years before the recent invention of the electric light bulb – there is a fresh spotlight placed on the current research into why doing so is absolutely key to well-being. What we’re learning? Follow the cycle of the sun by dialing down activity and light exposure at dusk, then energizing with bright natural rays around dawn, and things run smoothly internally. On the flip side, ignore circadian rhythms by staying up late, being on screens and compromising sleep, and it invites chaos that manifests as stress, poor health, emotional turmoil and other issues.

Of course, we are modern beings existing in a nonstop culture. Many of us live in cities where the lights, noise and activity are out of our hands. But though we are easily knocked off our natural rhythms by lifestyle factors, the system is mercifully flexible and we can just as efficiently fall back in sync. Time spent at Blackberry Farm or Mountain, for one, provides the natural patterns and bucolic environs our bodies crave and the opportunity to reset our clocks. And in essence, reset our lives. This communication between our physiology and the natural world is a complicated language, but translating it to daily habits to optimize physical, mental, and emotional wellness is surprisingly simple. Understanding the big points will help you keep the right beat.

You have one master clock that rules your internal world.

It exists in your brain, and it essentially sets the biological pace each day, explains Dr. Roger Seheult, sleep specialist and pulmonary and critical care physician. Boiled down: By observing cues from the outside world – primarily, the sun rising and setting – the master clock syncs the body’s rhythm to the environment. Its biggest priority is to control the sleep-wake cycle, and to do so, it prompts the production of two key hormones: melatonin in the evening to wind us down and cortisol in the morning to wind us back up. This synchrony, as research is discovering, is the quiet driver of optimal health.

But you also have mini clocks in each of your cells and organs.

There’s a metabolism clock, a muscle clock, an immune-system clock, one for the skin – the list

goes on. And each attunes to that master clock in the brain to set a timer for when it needs to take on the demands of its job, and when it can chill out and recover from the hard work. We are meant to be active during the day and to rest at night, points out Dr. Catherine Darley, a naturopathic sleep doctor, “and so our internal biology is alerted and prepared for that plan. Let’s take metabolism as one example,” she says. “When you eat during daylight hours, your metabolism is primed for peak performance; consume a big meal late at night when all signals tell it to close up shop, and your digestion will be sluggish. Things won’t feel right.” One way to contemplate the process: Imagine a conductor (your brain) directing an orchestra. The sheet music is the dawn/dusk cycle. The tuba is your muscle, the cello your liver, and so on, each poised to play its part at certain times, staying in tune with the other instruments. But if every musician were to go rogue, the melodic song would become noise. When our bodies don’t receive and heed the notes from nature – because we’re not exposed to the outdoors, absorbing the sun’s rays, moving in green spaces, resting once dark – our biology becomes that clashing music. This is when things go awry. Our well-being suffers, we become tired, less productive and unfocused.

It’s all about the light.

Humans in most modern environments have darkness deficiency, says Dr. Darley. “It’s too bright at night, from lights, electronic screens, the glow from your alarm clock or TV, and that constant, even low-level glimmer causes circadian disruption, blunting the signals to produce melatonin to make us sleepy at the right time.” The consequences don’t stop there. Melatonin is one of our strongest antioxidants, Dr. Darley explains further, necessary for nearly all of our biological processes, not least of which is generating energy.

At the same time, many of us receive weak light signals during the day by working indoors and not experiencing the sun’s rays, which prevents us from receiving the health-boosting effects of a bright burst. “Exposure to vibrant, natural light, especially in the morning, sets off a critical chain of events (the production of the invigorating hormone cortisol, for one) that anchors our circadian rhythm, primes our organs for activity, and improves our vitality, cognition and overall functioning.” In short, we want extremes: bright light during the day, pitch black at night. “Consider human existence before electric light,” says Dr. Darley. “Our physiology developed in this dynamic, yet predictable environment. It’s what we are designed to respond to. But our modern lifestyles drift, we get mixed messages from night activity and an indoor existence. It’s no wonder our physiology might need some readjusting.”

All of those clocks can be reset, and your health restored.

Getting in tune with the cadence of the natural world will put you back in optimal rhythm, according to Dr. Seheult. It involves intricate processes but simple methods: Wake early, go outside, preferably (but not critically) in nature and see the light. If possible, be active. Exercise will go far to keep your wake and sleep hormones balanced, according to Dr. Seheult. And continue to get hits of bright sunlight throughout the day. Shift to very low light in the evenings after sunset, and total darkness when going to bed.

Also, take measures to tone down tension. Our internal clocks are at the mercy of our stress hormones. Walks in nature, meditation, massages – whatever keeps you calm will also keep your body, and brain, content.