It’s All New––Have You Learned the Steps?

The beginning of every new year brings an opportunity to hit the “Refresh” button on our lives. January 2021 ushered in a season of hopefulness for something “new-and-improved” over last year’s “what-just-happened” kind of a year.

In my annual fascination with seasonal changes, I’ve gathered intriguing information on circadian rhythms. If you’ve read my book, The Wise Woman’s Almanac: A Seasonal Guide with Recipes for New Beginnings that Never Go Out of Season, you understand my interest in seasons, cycles and rhythms.

At the beginning of each Spring-Summer-Autumn-Winter, I like to sit quietly and reflect on the “character” of that season. It isn’t difficult to observe nature’s signs and wonders if we slow our pace and take note of the natural world around us.

It’s the internal cycles and rhythms our amazing body flows through in a given time that seem more mysterious and intriguing. These physical, mental and behavioral changes that follow a 24- hour cycle are known as circadian rhythms. Humanity has survived thousands of years because of its ability to manage or adapt to its environmental cyclical changes.

Primitive cultures discovered ways to connect with nature by learning about and listening to their internal rhythms. This awareness gave them safety, provision and comfort. Our noisy, hurried, often toxic modern-day world distracts us from hearing and feeling those internal messages.

I found it interesting that for as long as humankind has inhabited and interacted with this planet, the twenty-first-century scientist has finally taken note of this concept, especially as it applies to our health and longevity. Chronobiology (chronos, meaning time and biology, the study of living organisms) is the term given to the study of circadian rhythms.

“In 2017, researchers Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash, and Michael W. Young won the prestigious Nobel Prize for their circadian rhythms research. By studying fruit flies, which have a very similar genetic makeup to humans, they isolated a gene that helps control the body’s clock. The scientists showed that the gene produces a protein that builds up in cells overnight, then breaks down during the day. This process can affect when you sleep, how sharply your brain functions, and more. All three researchers were funded by NIGMS when these major discoveries were made.” (National Institute of General Medical Sciences)

The word chronobiology is a relatively new word, being first recorded in 1975-1980. This formal research and study is opening opportunities to learn more about the intricacies of our incredible human body and how it fully functions in sync with its natural environment.

I hope you’ll continue to check in weekly for my continued posts on this intriguing topic and how you may live health-fully and harmoniously in your environment.