Make the most of your summer days through daily habits
It's finally happened: the first day of summer! It’s a day that reminds me of the many benefits of daylight, sunshine, and maintaining a circadian rhythm that’s in line with nature.
That last part might sound fancy, but it’s simply keeping a schedule that reasonably has us waking with the light of the day and refraining from sources of blue light (TVs, computers, smartphones, etc.) too close to bedtime.
What does this have to do with health and wellness? Big picture: our body sets its internal hormonal rhythms primarily by knowing when the day begins and ends. In other words, getting the morning light in our eyes informs our bodies to orchestrate a whole host of processes that must be sequenced appropriately for numerous essential functions to operate correctly.
One example is that our bodies are supposed to begin releasing the hormone Cortisol in the hours before we wake; this ensures that alertness and energy are available to us when we get up. If our circadian rhythm is off, our bodies don’t release the right amount of cortisol at the correct time, and we wake up groggy and slow.
Many more processes in the body depend on the signaling that daylight provides. They have massive implications for our health, including the root causes of diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. Yes, it’s that important for our health.
Here are a few tips:
Get morning daylight into your eyes within 30 min of waking: walk the dog; sit on the porch as you clear out your emails; set yourself up in front of a window with the sun in your face. Your eyes don’t care what you're doing, so long as they see the light of day (indoor lights are not strong enough).
Get outside at lunchtime: our eyes/brains are also sensitive to the peak light of the noontime sun. It’s not as strong of a signal as the morning light, but it’s still a good stimulus from which your brain can calibrate.
Exercise first thing in the morning: a workout that gets you sweating and raises your heart rate can help set your circadian rhythm.
Eat a high-protein breakfast: there are so many good things about eating a lot of protein at breakfast, and this is another.
Cut down on blue light at least an hour before bedtime: this is a huge one in our modern, computer-driven world. While it might be necessary for work or social connection (and I don’t want to undervalue either), our minds are having a challenging time adjusting to this phenomenon, and it’s wreaking havoc on our biology.
I’ve only scraped the surface on this issue, but hopefully, it gives you a sense of how important it is and some modest, very doable actions you can take.
Remember, you are the one with the most control over your health. I hope this helps!