CSOn light, lifestyle and health. That’s what the world’s leading chronobiologist Prof. Satchin Panda of the famous SALK Institute for Biological Studies in San Diego, author of the bestselling book The Circadian Code, talked about yesterday in his excellent public lecture. He presented the practical results of many years of research in the field of chronobiology, and did so in a lucid and humorous manner. Clinical research and practical application on selected target groups provide clear evidence that light, its quality and (not) enough of it have a fundamental impact on our lives and health.
Professor Panda is the keynote speaker at the ongoing closed annual conference of the Society for Light Treatment and Biological Rhythms (SLTBR) at Charles University, of which we are privileged to be a partner. Although his work is highly technical, it’s great that we were able to contribute (especially thanks to the efforts of Hynek Medřický) to have him present the practical results of his research in public.
Satchin Panda’s lecture focused on the connection between circadian rhythm, which is determined by the body’s response to the alternation of light and dark, and food intake. But there was also a discussion of how light can affect the healthy development of newborns or mental health.
So what can we do to live long and healthy lives?
- Our body has been set up for millions of years to alternate light and dark regularly, and regularity is good for it. Aligning with the natural circadian rhythm is the path to health.
- I’m sure the fans of intermittent fasting will fall into line: yes, it really is healthy to compress consumption into a regular 12, ideally 10-hour window. (Most Americans, and we fear it will be no different in the Czech Republic, eat for 15 hours or more.)
- We eat no earlier than an hour after waking and no later than 3 hours before bedtime.
- Let’s try to sleep 7-8 hours a day.
- Let’s allow ourselves at least 30 minutes of sunlight each day.
- Limit blue light in the evening and at night.
- And regular 30 minutes of continuous and vigorous physical activity (preferably in daylight) each day.
Sure, we can’t move back to the fields, meadows and hillsides, and resort to sleeping in caves, but we can help our bodies to maximum health through discipline. One of the experiments the San Diego team conducted was with local firefighters. People who work shifts, live under stress and have a very irregular life rhythm. And even these people were able to set healthy rules that they stuck to as part of the experiment. And with a very positive impact on health. And as Satchin said, “If firefighters can do it, anyone can do it!”
