The rhythms we ignore: evidence for natural bio-rhythms

Introduction

As I write this article, migratory birds have returned to their spring breeding grounds. I don’t have to set my alarm clock. Predictably, as if on cue, my open window allows the songs of the various species of tanagers, warblers, and thrushes to wake me up—at the same time of day, every day, every spring. As the morning warms, I hear Sandhill Cranes and Great Blue Herons, interspersed with the honking of Canada Geese.

While the natural world is built on rhythms, humans often ignore or even deliberately fight against these rhythms. We work late into the night under fluorescent lights (typically fueled by caffeine and carbohydrates). We come home strung out and turn to alcohol or cannabis to relax, and when that doesn’t work, we use prescription sleep aids. We move from one climate- conditioned space to another, and in between conditioned spaces, we wear puffy down coats, getting into a vehicle pre-warmed by remote control. In short, we push and ignore the rhythms, push through the friction, and force asynchronous behavior. We are so clever that we don’t let nature set limits on us. Not so clever; it is all too frequently to our detriment.

The topic of circadian rhythms is a touchy subject for me. On the one hand, early in my career I developed an intellectual interest in these rhythms and how they impact health and sickness.
On the other hand, I diligently tried to reconcile that understanding whilst I repeatedly insulted my own body with nearly 20 years of intermittent night shift work in the emergency department. But it was partly my attempts at reconciliation that brought me to Endobiogeny. Early in my career, I tried to mitigate the damage of night shift work by deliberately not eating from 19:00 – 07:00. I ended my caffeine consumption at 19:00 on those shifts and I took adaptogenic herbs like Rhodiola rosea (Golden Root) and Eleutherococcus senticossus (Eleuthero). I encouraged my colleagues to do the same but was met with skeptical looks. I used mediation, breathwork, and sauna bathing to relax instead of sleep aids, alcohol, or cannabis. But I was fighting a losing battle. I was falling apart. You can’t outsmart millions of years of evolution. My testosterone levels were abysmal. My cortisol levels were frightening. And then I found Endobiogeny and had my first Biology of Functions performed. Not surprisingly, those results spoke of a deeply installed pattern of an adaptative (over- adapted) stress response.

There is a certain tyranny that comes with modernity. The pace of modern life with a 24-hour global economy may seem too complex to do anything about it. Combine this with the fact that people get sick at all hours of the day (and someone needs to take care of them), and the task of rhythmic living can feel truly daunting. We can’t all live a cloistered existence. But with increased understanding, we can be more intelligent at reducing disruptions and adapting ourselves when disruptions occur.

ENDOBIOGENY AND COSMOBIOLOGY
Since the inception of the theory of Endobiogeny, Dr. Christian Duraffourd has viewed the person in their environment. As Jean Claude once explained to an associate professor of family medicine, “The question is, ‘Why did this patient develop this disorder at this time of the year and in this time of their life?” [Source: Personal account by Kamyar M. Hedayat] The various cycles and epicycles of time and life are always accounted for in Endobiogeny. Fundamentally, these cycles are a cosmobiologic adaptation as a result of the movement of the earth around its star, resulting in circadian, seasonal and weather changes.In the following sections, I will briefly review three distinct types of biological rhythms and summarize our current scientific understanding of each. I will then discuss the relevance of accounting for these rhythms in clinical practice and give ideas on how to intelligently reduce the negative impact of disruptions to these rhythms when they inevitably occur.

CIRCADIAN RHYTHMS

Circadian rhythms are the most familiar of all our biological cycles. This rhythm refers to the biological oscillations that occur over an approximately 24-hour period. This allows organisms to anticipate their environment and regulate their physiology to be most optimal at the right time of the day/night. The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus generates self- sustaining rhythms and is considered the “central” or “master” clock.[1] The SCN receives information from the environment (mostly in the form of light/dark cycles) and uses this information to adjust to and entrain its phases. This information is then used to regulate processes such as sleep- wake cycles, hormone secretion, metabolism, and immune function.[2] Disruptions in circadian rhythms have been linked to various medical conditions, including sleep disorders, metabolic disorders, mood disorders, and even cancer.[3,4,5]

The timing and amplitude of cortisol secretion are regulated by the circadian clock, and disruptions in the circadian rhythm of cortisol secretion have been linked to various disorders.[6] Interestingly (and of clinical relevance), a tonic application of a constant dose of glucocorticoids in the treatment of adrenal insufficiency does not alleviate symptoms and often exacerbates cardiovascular, metabolic and psychiatric afflictions.[7] This finding substantiates the logic of the endobiogenic approach which favors the use of adaptogenic plants where possible in the treatment of adrenal insufficiency. This approach simply harnesses the“smart tech” developed over millennia of evolution by leaning on the intrinsic intelligence of the plant to support endogenous glucocorticoid production at a rate that honors our biologic rhythmicity.

 

Clinical Tip: Regulating circadian disruption

When the demands of life demand a disruption to our circadian rhythm (such as occurs with night shift work, traveling overseas, or simply staying up all night with a sick child),

1. During the asynchronous schedule:
   1. Rhodiola rosea (Golden Root)[8] and
   2. Cordyceps militaris (Cordyceps mushroom).
2. During recovery:
   1. Eleutherococcus senticossus (Eleuthero) and
   2. Ganoderma lucidum (Reishi) to support getting back into proper life rhythm, such as the weekends or when the patient is on vacation.

 

ULTRADIAN RHYTHMS
Ultradian rhythms are biological cycles that occur within a 24-hour period but have a shorter duration than the circadian rhythm. Ultradian rhythms have been observed in various physiological processes, such as heart rate, respiratory rate, and body temperature. These rhythms are important for maintaining homeostasis and are regulated by complex neural and hormonal mechanisms.

One of the most well-known ultradian rhythms is the sleep cycle, which is characterized by the alternating stages of non-rapid eye movement (NREM) and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, occurring in successive cycles lasting approximately 90 minutes each. During deep, restorative sleep, brain EEG findings are characterized as low- frequency/high-amplitude and referred to as slow- wave activity (SWA).[9] During normal aging, there are significant changes to the architecture and duration of REM, non-REM and slow-wave sleep, with a remarkable decrease in slow-wave sleep. The reduction in slow-wave sleep contributes to memory deficits, decreased daytime alertness and decreased task performance.[10]

Insomnia is a condition frequently encountered in clinical practice. It occurs with greater prevalence in mid-life (age 35-50 years), but in old age (age 70-80 years) no further increase in prevalence is observed.[11] Paying attention to this particular ultradian rhythm has relevance for graceful aging and delaying/slowing senescence. Most current treatments for insomnia are directed at decreasing wakefulness with sedatives. Unfortunately, these medications do not improve restorative slow-wave sleep duration, and they may contribute to advancing, not slowing senescence.[12] While there may be a role for prescription sleep medications for rapid and acute management of sleep dysregulation, these medications are not a sound long term strategy.

Melatonin rhythmicity plays a central role in modulating both circadian and ultradian rhythms. While the use of exogenous melatonin for a defined period in the treatment of sleep dysregulation has a place, simultaneous attention should also be paid to improving endogenous melatonin production (c.f. Tryptophan and melatonin for seasonal adaptation)

Clinical tip: Regulating Insomnia with melatonin adaptogens
A number of medicinal plants can also be used. The most sedating plants in the following list are:

1. Valeriana officinalis (Valerian) as a tea, capsule, or tincture, or,
2. Nardostachys jatamansi (Jatamansi) essential oils applied as a friction rub to the glaborus skin of the palms of the hands or bottoms of the feet or radial pulse points.
3. Elettaria cardamomum (cardamom) seed decoction (1 tsp in 300 ml of water for 20 minutes), evenings before bed is less sedating, but quite relaxing.

Clinical tip: lifestyle modifications to improve melatonin
There are also certain behaviors that can be encouraged to which can improve endogenous melatonin production a rate that supports our ultradian rhythm, encouraging timely melatonin excretion.

1. Mornings: exposure to sunlight (or full spectrum artificial light)[13]
2. Evenings:
   1. Limit exposure to blue light from electronic devices after 9 pm
   2. Set to “night shift” mode
   3. Wear blue light filtering eye glasses
   4. Dim lights to a warm glow, avoid fluorescent lights[14]

Temperature regulation is also regulated by ultradian rhythms and this in turn plays a role in melatonin rhythmicity. Central cooling encourages melatonin secretion which promotes restorative sleep. This is why most people prefer sleeping cool. Paying attention to temperature can also improve sleep quality. Some studies suggest that taking a warm bath at night improves sleep quality, but it is actually the compensatory cooling after the warm bath that improves melatonin secretion and sleep quality. This is particularly noticeable in the correlation between the use of sauna bathing (typically accompanied with cold shower afterwards) and improved sleep quality.[15]

INFRADIAN RHYTHMS

Infradian rhythms are biological cycles that occur over a period of time longer than 24 hours, such as the menstrual cycle, seasonal variations in mood and behavior, and the hibernation cycle of certain animals. Like circadian and ultradian rhythms, infradian rhythms are also managed by the central clock in the SCN of the hypothalamus which in turn orchestrates the rhythmicity of peripheral clocks and local oscillators in the tissues.[16] The current understanding is that this self-sustaining rhythmicity is driven by genetic components and regulated by feedback loops formed by a group of clock proteins. These chronobiologic systems are organized in nested hierarchies of subsidiary local clock and entrained and modulated by external time cues called “zeitgebers.” (Editor: German for “time-grabber”)[17]

One of the most well-known infradian rhythms is the menstrual cycle. The circannual relaunching of adrenal and thyroid hormones in the early fall and again in late winter are other examples of infradian rhythms.[18]Consideration of these infradian rhythms have clinical relevance when treating treating patients with disorders related to reproductive health and mood disorders like seasonal affective disorder (SAD). The success of a particular treatment strategy may depend (or at least enhanced) but varying the dosing or composition of treatments for patients based on the patient’s position within the infradian cycle.

Clinical tip: Regulating the menstrual cycle1. Follicular phase (first half of the cycle) use estrogenic plants

1. Angelica sinensis (Dong Quai)
2. Salvia sclarea (Clary sage)

2. Luteal phase (second half of cycle): use progresteronic plants

1. Alchemilla vulgaris (Lady’s candle)
2. Achillea millefolium (Yarrow).

When regulating something like drainage in the menstrual cycle—especially catamenial disorders, a lower dose would be recommended in the first half of the cycle and a higher dose in the second half.

 

Clinical tip: Regulating seasonal affective disorder

For seasonal affective disorder starting in late
1. August 18th through November 18th: light therapy

Weaning anti-depressant medications
2. Avoid February 18th through March 18th if there is depression and adrenal insufficiency, considering the seasonal infradian adrenal and thyrotropic adaptation demands

CONCLUSION

Albert Einstein established that time is relative. But timing (at least in our biological unfolding) is a different matter altogether. And we are barely scratching at the surface of our understanding of how relent this is in clinical practice.In Philosophia Botanica (1751), Carl Linnaeus described the theoretical possibility of planting a floral clock (horologium florae) where one could tell the time of day based on his careful observations of the predicable timing when different flower species would open and close. In our current era, hardly anyone has the attention span for noticing such a sophisticated display of chronobiology in nature. But just because most of us don’t devote this level of attention to chronobiologic rhythms in clinical practice, doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t. Circadian, utlradian and infradian rhythms play a critical role in regulating many physiological processes, and disruptions in these rhythms can have significant medical consequences. ❊

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About the Author
Adam Johnson, MD is the medical director of The Linné Institute of Medicine, a private medical practice dedicated to endobiogenic consultations. Prior to devoting his clinical attention to Endobiogeny, he practiced emergency medicine for 18 years. Before attending medical school at the University of Utah School of Medicine, Adam studied literature and philosophy. He lives with his wife and children in the mountains of beautiful Jackson Hole, Wyoming, USA.

 

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