Hello!
Welcome back!
I hope you’ve enjoyed the last few blogs concerning circadian rhythm and eating.
If you’ll recall, I wrote 4 lengthy blogs and barely scratched the surface on how to eat to improve one’s circadian rhythm, let alone described the importance of getting one’s circadian rhythm in sync.
No Rescue Ship is Coming.
Many, many blogs ago I spoke about watching a number of Twilight Zone shows and referred to a number of the episodes where a spaceship has crashed, and the survivors are in communication with their home planet, and any day now a rescue ship will be sent to get them….
In time, no more communication…, oh, and surprise… no rescue ship.
The survivors must make this new planet home and work together to survive.
I guess the point I’m trying to make is that no rescue ship is coming for us- this is it! We either figure out how to survive and control these bodies and planet, or we don’t- and that “don’t” will last an eternity.
And that’s a very, very long time.
The Importance of Gaining Wisdom.
To me, the attainment of, and the dissemination of wisdom is the most important, if not the only ambition one should focus his time and energy upon while floating in space on a rock and trying to survive with no instructions.
To this end, studying and knowing how to study are the most vital skills a being can possess.
Perhaps I am a teacher of sorts, but I reside on this planet governed by the same laws and rules that all of us must abide by… work at understanding this planet and each other, or die trying.
This planet and all that inhabit it can be understood, and it is the only way we can make it.
So… STUDY!!!!!
With this in mind, I invite you to find out all you can about our circadian rhythms, if only because it is the most natural course of life, and will pay the greatest dividends to those who learn about it and practice it.
Books You Should Read.
To this end I have referenced a couple of books that I think can help you:
Why We Sleep, by Matthew Walker, PhD
The Circadian Code, by Satchin Panda, PhD
There are many other references, books, and videos available and they should all help as we gain understanding and wisdom, and learn how to survive better on this planet.
Should you come across some interesting materials, please let me know. I would like to check them out.
Okay, before I run out of space again…,
Our Hunter-Gatherer Bodies.
Our bodies evolved along a natural timeline, and while modern life says it’s okay to not abide by these ancient rules, our bodies and the planet beg to differ.
Instead of doing as we please, confident that a rescue ship is coming for us someday in the form of a magic pill, or cell phone app- why not look back and try to understand the genesis of homo sapiens, and how our bodies evolved over millions of years?
How might we re-align with those early and very basic decisions that created the bodies we now occupy, rather than continue to alter and alter and alter these bodies until nothing works in terms of survival?
For example, the basic design of our bodies is that of a hunter-gather; something that we have discussed earlier.
In those early, paleo-times one had to be able to store fat to survive, and only those bodies that evolved insulin and a way to store fat and energy survived.
Why? Because paleo-man wasn’t able to find food every day as we can.
For that matter, paleo-man found that sweet foods that had sugar in them like berries and honey could provide instant energy, another pro-survival strategy.
But our modern-day “sweet tooths”, and 24-hour-a-day supply of food only make us overweight, obese, and very sick in light of this early, paleo-man survival adaptation.
What was once a survival mechanism, the ability to store fat might potentially wipe Man off the face of the Earth.
So, a better understanding of how our bodies evolved will most definitely illuminate how we should be living now… regardless of our 24-hour, plastic-fantastic world where one day there will be a pill that makes everything perfect!
There is, it’s called cyanide!
You know, think about it… what are the basics?
Eating, sleeping, exercise/activity, interaction with others, the sun comes up, the sun goes down, we breathe in and we breathe out….
Say, that sounds like a rhythm!
You’re right.
And this is how our circadian rhythms evolved over millions of years, and it is these rhythms that keep us healthy, and connected to the world around us… REGARDLESS, of whether you think you can stay up all night binge-watching TV, and grabbing a midnight snack at Taco Bell….
Unfortunately, a few decades of modern “science” and Madison Avenue simply cannot undo millions of years of evolution.
Just look around if you don’t believe me- the world is illuminated and “alive” 24/7 and I’ll bet you’ve never felt more unhappy and stressed at any other time in your life!
How can this be? Just push a button and there you go.
In my opinion, you are out of sync with your natural, circadian rhythm:
Eating more than 12 hours a day, bathed in unnatural light from LED lights, and screens and not preparing for, and acquiring 7 to 9 hours of sleep each and every night!
Okay, well that brings us to sleep which is the next component of re-aligning our circadian rhythms. Got questions? Comment below or send us a message!
Take Care,
Dr. Dave
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