TIMING By Conner Middelmann IS Nutritionist @ Modern EVERYTHING - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

IN HEALTH (AS IN COMEDY)

TIMING IS EVERYTHING

By Conner Middelmann

Nutritionist @ Modern Mediterranean LLC

You were right all along, Mom!

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When we sleep, eat & exercise…

… is at least as important to health as what we eat, how many hours we sleep, and which type of exercise we practice, researchers are discovering. This is called the science of Circadian Rhythm.

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The rhythms of nature

Each of us has an internal body clock called the circadian clock. The term comes from the Latin circa ("around" or "approximately") and diēm (“day“). Your circadian clock is responsible for programming every aspect of your physiology including breathing, heartbeat, digestion, detoxification, making new cells and hormones, regulating blood pressure, temperature, blood sugar balance and insulin production. Since your body can’t perform all its internal activities at the same time, your circadian clock ensures a specific, well-timed daily schedule. To enjoy optimal health, we must stay in tune with our circadian clock.

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Different jobs at different times

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Work with your body clock

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Circadian disruption → health problems

Research into the health of shift workers (20% of workforce) has revealed that disrupting the body clock – especially over long periods of time – is associated with a significant increase in health problems. These include:

• Cardiovascular disease (blood pressure, heart attack, stroke)
• Metabolic syndrome (dyslipidemia, (pre)diabetes, obesity, gout, fatty liver,

inflammation, etc.)

• Gastrointestinal problems (acid reflux, IBS, constipation, diarrhea, etc.)
• Compromised immune function
• Increased cancer risk
• Dementia

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Our brain loves steady circadian cycles

A healthy circadian rhythm also improves mental functioning.

• Attention is naturally high during the day and low at night. When sleep deprived,

it’s hard to concentrate.

• Positive/negative reward assessment when sleep deprived, we have poor

judgment when choosing between two options (e.g. the donut or the apple).

• Memory: When we sleep, the hippocampus consolidates the information you

have acquired. With sleep deprivation, short- & long-term memory are disrupted.

• Mood: Sleep deprivation leads to mood swings, irritability, overwhelm, etc.
• Autonomic function: The autonomous system, which controls heart rate, stress

response & digestion is synched to your circadian clock. Sleep deprivation interferes with this and this can lead to anxiety, GI issues and palpitations.

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We are all shift workers

Not only nurses and firefighters are at risk. Modern living has turned us all into shift workers! For instance, --

• Shift-like lifestyle (new mothers, students, musicians)
• Gig economy (freelancers, ride-share drivers, call center operators, etc.)
• Second-hand shift workers (spouses or children of shift workers whose

circadian rhythm is disrupted because they want to spend time with them)

• Jet lag (when you move across time zones within the same day)
• Social jet lag (when you sleep late and wake up two hours later than usual)
• Digital jet lag (when you stay awake between 10 pm and 5 am chatting with

people in different time zones)

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Are you a shift worker?

A shift worker is a person who spends more than 3 hours awake between 10 pm and 5 am 50 days or more a year. (International Labor Organization, Geneva.) If this describes you, you might want to look at ways you could

• ptimize your circadian rhythm.

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How circadian rhythms work

Every living organism (incl. plants) has an internal genetic mechanism that is responsible for controlling your circadian rhythm. An area in the brain called the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) is key to your daily

• rhythm. It is influenced by the blue light that comes in via the retina. The SCN is

also sensitive to food. It triggers hunger in the brain and thus influences the gut and liver clocks. Every organ has a unique clock that functions independently of the brain. For instance, cellular repair only happens when you sleep, but the liver only makes cholesterol during the day.

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Body clock disruptors

• Irregular sleep schedules, daytime napping
• Bright light at night (lamps, computers, phones, tablets, etc.)
• Insufficient time spent outdoors (daylight resets the body’s clock)
• Erratic eating patterns
• Caffeine
• Alcohol
• Not exercising or exercising at sub-optimal times
• Chronic stress

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The science behind circadian rhythms

Watch Dr. Panda’s TED … and listen to these two Talk to learn more about his work fascinating podcast (click on image below) … interviews with him:

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Are you at risk from circadian imbalance?

Take Satchin Panda’s Health Assessment Quiz (from his book, The Circadian Code). Click on image (right) to access full questionnaire.

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Sleep, eat, move: The dance of health

There are three core rhythms that are created by the clocks in your organs:

• Sleep: Sleeping 7 hours a night between 10 pm and 5 am – as consistently as

possible – reinforces the body clock. Bedroom should be dark & quiet, and bedtime should be preceded by at least one hour without looking at screens.

• Nutrition: If you eat at random times of the day, you throw your circadian

clocks off balance. This disrupts liver and gut function, raising the risk of weight gain & diabetes.

• Activity: your muscles are most active during the day when you engage in some

form of physical activity. Exercise enhances sleep quality and strengthens your circadian clock.

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How to improve circadian health: Sleep

Adults need at least 7 hours’ sleep a night. Sleep quality is as important as

• quantity. How to improve both:
• Develop a sleep routine and don’t diverge from it by much on weekends. It’s

best to go to bed early and wake up 7 hours later – ideally without an alarm.

• Keep a cool bedroom.
• Don’t leave lights or TV on at night.
• Eliminate noise in your bedroom; white noise machines can help.
• Manage worry before bedtime (e.g., jot down things that might cause you to

ruminate over night in a notebook)

• Meditate or try a “Sleep story” on the Calm app.

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Managing light for better sleep - 1

To help your brain & body differentiate between night & day, expose yourself to bright light as soon as as you can after awakening. Even on a cloudy day, daylight can have as much as 10,000

• lux. (Lux = a measure of light intensity,

as perceived by the human eye.) We need between 500 to 1,000 lux to synchronize our internal clock to the

• utside world. People who spend most
• f their day indoors have somewhere

between 100 to 300 lux, which is not enough to activate melanopsin (light- sensing cells in the retina that tell the brain whether it’s night or day). These free phone apps can tell how many lux you’re getting exposed to. Try this fun & fascinating experiment!

Lux Light Meter (Android) My Lux Recorder (Apple)

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Managing light for better sleep - 2

Nighttime is a different story. Our body is designed to have less than 20 lux at night (candlelight is 1 to 2 lux). A modern home can have 100-200 lux of light. A grocery store has 1,000 lux of light. This can disrupt our sleep. To improve sleep quantity & quality:

• Reduce bright light exposure in the evening.

(Shop during the day.)

• Keep bedroom dimly lit. (Try blue-light-free

light bulbs.)

• Don’t watch anything highly stimulating on
• TV. Avoid exciting video games.
• Don’t look at screens for at least 1 hour

before you go to bed (computers, phones, tablets, etc.)

• If you need to do so, wear blue-light blocking

glasses.

• And install blue-light blockers on computer &

phone.

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How to improve circadian health: Eat

Eating & drinking all our calories within a limited window of time supports circadian health. This is called time-restricted feeding, a.k.a. intermittent fasting. The average person eats over a 15-hour or longer period each day, starting with milk and coffee shortly after rising and ending with a glass of wine, a late-night meal or a handful of chips, nuts or some other snack shortly before bed. However, studies have shown that when mice and humans eat in a time window ranging from 6 to 11 hours, their health improves. That’s because the organs involved in digesting and metabolizing food – pancreas, liver, gut, microbiome – work best during the day and stop working after 10 pm.

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TRE seems to work in humans, too

These findings are being tested on humans and are yielding encouraging results. In a recent, tightly-controlled experiment in a small group of prediabetic men, the subjects ate their meals in a 12-hour daily window for five weeks. In the second phase of the study, they were fed the same meals in a six-hour window beginning each morning for another 5 weeks. (The researchers gave the subjects enough food to maintain their weight so they could see whether the time-restricted regimen had any health benefits unrelated to weight loss.) On the time-restricted regimen, the men had lower insulin, reduced levels of

• xidative stress, less nighttime hunger and significantly lower blood
• pressure. Their systolic pressure fell by roughly 11 points and their diastolic

pressure dropped by 10 points.

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Eating for circadian health

Turns out, the adage, “eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper” is true. Dozens of studies show that blood sugar control is best in the morning and worst in the evening. We also burn more calories and digest food more efficiently in the morning.

• Eat a hearty breakfast that comprises healthy protein, fats and low-glycemic,

high-fiber carbohydrates. (These help you feel full and avoid snacking.)

• After noon, avoid caffeinated drinks or chocolate & chocolate drinks at night.
• No calories, caffeine or alcohol for 2-3 hours before bed (water & herbal tea

are OK). This helps the body do all its nocturnal work: Detoxification, tissue repair & growth, fat-burning, etc. It also helps you sleep better and reduces GI problems like GERD.

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Time-restricted eating boosts health

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Click on image for article about the health benefits of IF.

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Shift gradually to TRE

There are many ways to restrict your eating opportunities; find out what works best for you. Before you start TRE, check with your doctor that this is safe and appropriate for you.*

1.

Determine how long you currently fast overnight (e.g., 9 hours? 10 hours?)

2.

Add ¼ hour to this period every 2-3 days (i.e., 9¼ hrs, then 9½ hrs, then 9¾ hrs, etc.) until you get to 12 hours’ overnight fasting.

3.

When you are awake but fasting, drink plenty of non-caloric fluids.

4.

Eat your usual meals during your 10- to 12-hour eating window; do not restrict calories. Limit/avoid snacks in-between meals.

5.

Don’t fast every day; mix it up and take breaks (e.g. weekends).

*Not recommended for pregnant or lactating women, people with a history of eating disorders, children & teens. People on diabetes or blood pressure medication should fast under medical supervision.

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One more thing: The perils of snacking - 1

From Jason Fung MD’s article: The Perils of Snacking

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The perils of snacking - 2

From Jason Fung MD’s article: The Perils of Snacking

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More on intermittent fasting (click images to view)

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Harvard Medical School article on intermittent fasting Short intro to fasting by Jason Fung MD Intermittent Fasting Made My Life Easier, & Happier – NYT article More in-depth interview with

• Dr. Fung re. fasting strategies

Remember: Don’t fast without your doctor’s

• knowledge. If you’re on blood-sugar or diabetes

medication, only fast under medical supervision, as drug dosages may need to be adjusted.

How to improve circadian health: Move

People who take daily exercise sleep better. Studies show that physical activity of any kind triggers the production of certain molecules in your muscles that activate the “muscle clock.” This strengthens your circadian clock to help you sleep better. Conversely, having a healthy circadian rhythm and getting quality sleep boosts exercise performance. Research has found that mice with faulty circadian clocks can’t exercise for long and get tired easily.

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Different times for different moves

Morning outdoor exercise is great for stimulating your brain clock, boosting mood, lowering inflammation and burning fat. Even a 30- to 40- minute walk is

• great. If you are exercising indoors, try to get near a window to get maximum

daylight exposure. In the late afternoon, muscle tone rises, and this is a good time for weight lifting and high-intensity exercise. Late-afternoon exercise also reduces appetite. Exercising after dinner (e.g., a walk) can lower blood glucose and improve

• digestion. However, high-intensity exercise in the evening can increase your

temperature and heart rate and make it harder to fall asleep. If you exercise late, take a cool shower to cool your body down.

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Over to you!

Use the Salk Institute’s myCircadianClock app to get to know your body’s rhythms – while advancing science! You log food, activity and sleep, and after 10 days of collecting data, the app starts providing feedback about your circadian

• habits. Data you share through

the app will be used to help researchers understand how daily timing of our behaviors influence health and wellbeing.

Click on image to access app’s website & sign up.

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Alternatively, use a pen & paper tracker

What time did you wake up? With or without an alarm clock? What time did you go to sleep? What time did you take your first bite/sip of the day? (Other than water.) What time did you take your last bite/sip of the day? (Other than water or herbal tea.) What time did you shut

• f all

screens? What time did you exercise? Monday Time ……….... Alarm? Y / N Tuesday Time …………. Alarm? Y / N Wednesday Time …………. Alarm? Y / N Thursday Time …………. Alarm? Y / N Friday Time …………. Alarm? Y / N Saturday Time …………. Alarm? Y / N Sunday Time …………. Alarm? Y / N

Aim for:

• At least 7 hours sleep per night
• An eating window of 8-12

hours (i.e., fasting window of 12-16 hours)

• A 2- to 3-hour gap between

your last calorie intake (incl. snacks or alcohol) and bedtime

• If your wake times vary by 2

hours or more, work at getting your rhythm back in synch (earlier bedtimes, sleep hygiene – see above)

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If you’re a shift worker: Manage your sleep

• Don’t delay going to bed.
• Try to set aside a block of 7 to 9 hours to dedicate to sleep after a night shift.
• Have something to eat and drink before you go to bed.
• Avoid alcohol before you try to sleep. Alcohol disrupts sleep.
• Avoid smoking before bed. Nicotine is a stimulant.
• Avoid activities that make you feel alert until the hours before your next shift.
• Make sure your bedroom is quiet, dark, and at a comfortable temperature.
• Notify friends and family of your working hours so that they do not disturb

you.

From Medical News Today article: Life Hacks: How to cope with night shifts

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If you’re a shift worker: Ctrl light exposure

• Increase bright light exposure during your shift with regular overhead lights or

a bright desk lamp or lightbox

• Wear sunglasses on your journey home and blue-light blocking glasses at

home if lights are on or you’re looking at screens

• Use blackout blinds, curtains, or drapes or a sleep mask to block out daylight

in your bedroom

• Don’t watch TV before you go to bed
• Switch off digital devices situated in your bedroom, including powering down

tablets and computers, putting your phone away, and blocking light from bright alarm clocks

From Medical News Today article: Life Hacks: How to cope with night shifts

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If you’re a shift worker: Watch your diet

• Eat nutritious, minimally processed foods which supply nutrients that support your

cognitive and overall health.

• Avoid foods that are low in nutrients or hard to digest, such as fried, spicy &

processed meals.

• Avoid foods that can upset your blood sugar levels, such as bread, pizza, pasta,

cookies and sugary drinks.

• If you snack, eat fruits, vegetables and nuts. Sugars from these are converted slowly

into energy, and they are an important source of vitamins, minerals, and fiber.

• Keep hydrated while you are working to promote physical and mental performance,

but do not overload the bladder with fluid before bed.

• Use caffeine in small, frequent doses to help you stay awake and focused, but stop

consuming it 6 hours or less before bedtime.

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Make it work for YOU

Don’t try to do all this at once! Start by observing your current patterns. Next, pick ONE change (keep it realistic) and do the Envisioning Exercise (handout). E.g.,

• “Go for a 30-minute walk in the morning.”
• “Take a 10-minute walk after meals.” (This has been shown to lower blood

glucose in diabetics by 22%).

• “Move late-night snack forward from 11 pm to 10 pm” or “Move breakfast

back from 6 am to 7 or 8 am,” to lengthen your overnight fast.

• “Move bedtime forward from midnight to 11.30 or 11” to increase sleep time.

(See sample Envisioning Exercise: “Lights out at 10.30”)

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Contact details

Conner Middelmann, B.Sc., DipION

Nutrition coach, Boulder, Colorado

• Tel: 720 289 1958
• Email: connermid@gmail.com
• Website: www.modernmediterranean.com
• Recipe blog: www.recipes-for-disaster.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/modernmediterranean and

www.instagram.com/myrecipesfordisaster.com

• Facebook: www.facebook.com/ModernMediterranean

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