Emotional Plants with Motion (Sunlight Sonata VII)
—Incorporating sunbathing into a healthy lifestyle, some suggestions
• ME: —We have been discussing sunlight entrainment as it applies to human metabolic performance. Like cheetahs, it appears to me that humans evolved to function in an environmental niche unoccupied by large carnivores: midday heat. Cheetahs sprint to catch prey, humans run prey down to exhausted overheating in full sunlight. Additionally humans, pyrophilic troglophiles, used fires in caves, where adaptation to smoke fumes & particles, as well as sauna-like conditions might also have existed. But more likely, caves provided quiet, cool, dark havens by simply keeping a fire going at the entrance.
In any case, in our Sunlight Sonata discussions we've covered heme (& the homologies in porphyrin rings of chlorophyll & heme) & vitamin D3 metabolism, circadian entrainment, fructose perturbations, seed oil oxidation and structural inadequacy for cellular construction, etc., etc.. We slightly touched on sunlight's ocular interaction, without deeply exploring its effect on melanin production (or its inhibition by the use of dark glasses.) We have not discussed salt & proper hydration (avoiding salt & mineral depletion.)
You commented that, —"The key insight from current research is that sunlight exposure represents a complex environmental signal that humans evolved with over millions of years, triggering coordinated physiological responses that extend far beyond simple vitamin D production. The challenge lies in optimizing exposure to maximize benefits while ninimizing harm, which requires understanding individual factors like skin type, latitude, season, and time of day."
This harmonizes with A Posner's, —«Without proper evolutionary adaptation to the spectral solar irradiance, operation of mitochondrial respiration would be presumably impossible and life would be restricted to a world without light.» ¹
In any event, I previously mentioned that "as a human that avoids sunburn, but looks at dawn and dusk non-UV light [without sunglasses], assidiously obtains full-body sunlight (≈20 mins) between 10:00 to 16:00, limits daytime screen time viewing, & uses blue-light blocking lenses after dark (while limiting bright lights), I can attest to the joy & health intelligent sun exposure provides. Humans are 'plants with emotions.' "
Perhaps more aptly, "emotional plants with motion." In any event, in the last chapter, Sunlight Sonata VI, we promised to look at protocols: —what could be considered an ideal daily (perhaps with seasonal adjustment) rhythm of sun viewing along with eating, sunning, walking (10,000 steps?), napping, reading, studying, sleeping to optimize health & mental/physical performance (with the realization that there's a wide phenotypic, age & sex variability in humans)?
¹ A P Sommer (2020) Mitochondrial solar sensitivity: evolutionary and biomedical implications. Annals of translational medicine, 8(5), 161.
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◆ CAI: — Your synthesis beautifully captures the evolutionary perspective on human heliotropism and the complex orchestration of light-mediated physiological processes. The concept of humans as "emotional plants with motion" elegantly frames our fundamental dependence on solar rhythms while acknowledging our unique capacity for cognitive and emotional responses to environmental cues.
Building on your framework and the extensive physiological systems we've discussed, here's a research-informed approach to an optimal circadian-solar rhythm:
◆ CAI: — Dawn Phase (5:30-7:00 AM)
1. Light exposure: Direct east-facing sunlight viewing within 30 minutes of sunrise, without sunglasses, for 5-10 minutes. This low-angle, red-shifted light provides optimal circadian entrainment through melanopsin-containing retinal ganglion cells while avoiding UV damage. ¹
2. Hydration: Begin with mineral-rich water or natural salt solution to restore nocturnal fluid losses and support adrenal function. ²
3. Movement: Gentle mobility work or light walking, allowing natural cortisol awakening response to coordinate with light exposure.
◆ CAI: — Morning Phase (7:00-10:00 AM)
1. Nutrition: Break fast with protein-rich foods to support neurotransmitter synthesis and stabilize blood glucose. The timing leverages natural insulin sensitivity peaks. ³
2. Activity: Engage in cognitively demanding work when cortisol and alertness are naturally elevated.
3. Hydration: Continue electrolyte replacement, particularly sodium and potassium, which are depleted during sleep.
◆ CAI: — Midday Phase (10:00-14:00)
1. Solar exposure: Your 20-minute full-body sunlight protocol aligns perfectly with research showing this window provides optimal UVB for vitamin D synthesis while minimizing DNA damage risk. ⁴ The evolutionary adaptation to midday heat stress, as you noted, likely primed our melanin and heat shock protein responses.
2. Nutrition: Lighter meals that don't suppress the natural midday alertness peak. Fresh fruits provide natural fructose in the evolutionary context of fiber and antioxidants. (• ME: I'll have to revisit this "fresh fruit" S.A.D. recommendation with Claude. I consider this far from optimal for me & prefer beer or wine.)
3. Movement: Peak physical performance window —ideal for strength training or intense cardiovascular work, leveraging elevated core temperature and hormonal optimization. ⁵
◆ CAI: — Afternoon Phase (14:00-16:00)
1. Activity: Continued productive work, though with awareness of the natural post-lunch dip in alertness.
2. Hydration: Maintain electrolyte balance, particularly if engaging in midday solar exposure or exercise.
3. Optional rest: Brief nap (10-20 minutes) if needed, but not extending beyond 16:00 to preserve nighttime sleep drive. (• ME: I usually nap after sunning after a cold shower to cool down, —a "summer sauna session" if you will. I dont particularly worry about the nap's length since its integrative yoga-nidra state often gifts me with brief dreams.)
◆ CAI: — Late Afternoon (16:00-18:00)
1. Movement: Walking or moderate activity - your 10,000 steps target distributed throughout the day supports metabolic flexibility and venous return. ⁶
2. Nutrition: Balanced meal (• ME: Another S.A.D. phantasm permeating current "nutritional science", —I avoid fiber, minimize fruit & veggies, moderate grain consumption [especially US glyphosated produce] & focus on wild or free-range eggs, fowl, goat, lamb, beef, fish, fermented dairy eating nose-to-tail) with emphasis on anti-inflammatory foods (bone broth or fish soup?) to support recovery and prepare for evening wind-down. (• ME: What exactly are anti-inflammatory foods?)
3. Light management: Begin reducing bright light exposure, particularly blue wavelengths, as the sun naturally shifts toward red spectrum.
◆ CAI: — Evening Phase (18:00-21:00)
1. Sunset viewing: Like dawn viewing, observing sunset provides circadian anchoring through natural light spectrum changes, supporting melatonin production timing. ⁷
2. Nutrition: Earlier dinner timing (18:00-19:00) supports better sleep quality and metabolic health by aligning with natural insulin sensitivity patterns. ⁸
3. Blue light mitigation: Implement your blue-light blocking protocol progressively as artificial lighting becomes necessary.
◆ CAI: — Night Phase (21:00-5:30)
1. Environment: Minimize all artificial light exposure. Create cool, dark (•ME: & quiet) sleeping environment that mimics ancestral conditions.
2. Sleep optimization: 7-9 hours of sleep, with particular attention to the 22:00-2:00 window when growth hormone release peaks. ⁹ (• ME: Will have to revisit this since the 2nd phase with REM & dreams I consider just as vital; and because of my naval service's distorted sleep patterns & shift work became entrained in a biphasic sleep pattern.)
3. Hydration: Minimal fluid intake to prevent sleep disruption, but maintain bedside electrolyte solution for any nighttime needs. (• ME: Will expand the "hydration" issue. I'm more inclined to take a pinch of salt before a sip of water, especially at night. In general people are overhydrating to the point of hyponatremia, —low sodium blood levels that can cause nausea, headache, confusion & in severe cases, seizures or coma.)
◆ CAI: — Seasonal Adjustments
1. Winter: Extend morning light exposure, consider earlier rising to capture available daylight, potentially supplement with red light therapy to maintain circadian amplitude. ¹⁰ (• ME: Will revisit sauna & cold plunge use, especially in winter.)
2. Summer: Adjust timing windows earlier to avoid excessive heat stress, extend evening activities to take advantage of longer daylight hours. (• ME: Sensible solar exposure means walking on the shady side of streets, but staying indoors in a stable air conditioned comfort, whether cubicle or automobile, is in my view as deleterious to health as prolonged sitting or staying focused on screens for long periods.)
3. Latitude considerations: Higher latitudes require more aggressive light-seeking behavior in winter and more careful sun protection in summer. (• ME: This goes along with skin melatonin differences & the attenuation during winter of skin's protective mechanisms. Is the Earth's atmosphere less protective at higher latitudes than at the equator due to geomagnetic variation?)
◆ CAI: — Individual Variations:
1. Skin type: Melanin-rich individuals may require longer UV exposure for equivalent vitamin D synthesis, while lighter skin types need more careful timing and duration. ¹¹
2. Age: Older adults may need increased morning light exposure as circadian amplitude naturally decreases with aging. ¹²
3. Chronotype: Natural early risers versus night owls may need to adjust timing windows while maintaining the relative relationships between light, food, and activity.
◆ CAI: — Your integration of evolutionary context with modern research creates a compelling framework for understanding why these patterns feel intuitively "right" —they align with millions of years of environmental adaptation that shaped our physiology at the deepest cellular level.
• ME: The cellular level's hierarchical expression upwards to the cultural level. «Advances in single-cell biotechnology have increasingly revealed interactions of cells with their surroundings, suggesting a cellular society at the microscale. Similarities between cells and humans across multiple hierarchical levels have quantitative inference potential for reaching insights about phenotypic interactions that lead to morphological forms across multiple scales of cellular organization, namely cells, tissues and organs.» ¹³
. -References-
1. Zeitzer, J. M., Dijk, D. J., Kronauer, R., Brown, E., & Czeisler, C. (2000). Sensitivity of the human circadian pacemaker to nocturnal light. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 85(11), 4096-4103.
2. Takamata, A., Mack, G. W., Gillen, C. M., & Nadel, E. R. (1994). Sodium appetite, thirst, and body fluid regulation in humans during rehydration without sodium replacement. American Journal of Physiology, 266(4), R1493-R1502.
3. Poggiogalle, E., Jamshed, H., & Peterson, C. M. (2018). Circadian regulation of glucose, lipid, and energy metabolism in humans. Metabolism, 84, 11-27.
4. Holick, M. F. (2007). Vitamin D deficiency. New England Journal of Medicine, 357(3), 266-81.
5. Refinetti, R. (2006). Circadian physiology (2nd ed.). CRC Press.
6. Tudor-Locke, C., & Bassett Jr, D. R. (2004). How many steps/day are enough? Preliminary pedometer indices for public health. Sports Medicine, 34(1), 1-8.
7. Wright Jr, K. P., McHill, A. W., Birks, B. R., Griffin, B. R., Rusterholz, T., & Chinoy, E. D. (2013). Entrainment of the human circadian clock to the natural light-dark cycle. Current Biology, 23(16), 1554-1558.
8. Scheer, F. A., Morris, C. J., & Shea, S. A. (2013). The internal circadian clock increases hunger and appetite in the evening independent of food intake and other behaviors. Obesity, 21(3), 421-23.
9. Van Cauter, E., Plat, L., & Copinschi, G. (1998). Interrelations between sleep and the somatotropic axis. Sleep, 21(6), 553-66.
10. Rosenthal, N. E., Sack, D. A., Gillin, J. C., Lewy, A. J., Goodwin, F. K., Davenport, Y., ... & Wehr, T. A. (1984). Seasonal affective disorder: a description of the syndrome and preliminary findings with light therapy. Archives of General Psychiatry, 41(1), 72-80.
11. Armas, L. A., Dowell, S., Akhter, M., Duthuluru, S., Huerter, C., Hollis, B. W., ... & Heaney, R. P. (2007). Ultraviolet-B radiation increases serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels: the effect of UVB dose and skin color. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 57(4), 588-93.
12. Duffy, J. F., Zeitzer, J. M., Rimmer, D. W., Klerman, E. B., Dijk, D. J., & Czeisler, C. A. (2002). Peak of circadian melatonin rhythm occurs later within the sleep of older subjects. American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism, 282(2), E297-E303.
13. Ganesh, S., Utebay, B., Heit, J., & Coskun, A. F. (2020). Cellular sociology regulates the hierarchical spatial patterning and organization of cells in organisms. Open biology, 10(12), 200300.
. ■—Postscript—■
• ME: Interesting that you included fruit, I prefer the fructose fermented to alcohol. ;-)
I make a mineral water using CO2 to dissolve magnesium, sea salt, potassium & some iodine. Don't think it's the equivalent of ancestral brackish waters, but it seems to work. I'm also of opinion the generating metabolic water from long & medium chain fatty acids β-oxidation is important.
Additionally. I think fasting periods matter, so I use a 5:2 schedule, fasting Monday & Thursday (like the prophet Muhammed, though I'm not Muslim. We'll have to discuss the perverse effects of Ramadan diurnal fasting with nocturnal feasting, —the graveyard shift on steroids)
In Sunlight Sonata VIII we’ll continue refining a routine that optimizes solar radiation for well- being.
Good protocol but I’d add the use of coconut oil for redheads and Japanese people because of their fair skin.