Current research suggests that the balance of circadian rhythms is essential to health. That means if you want to heal your body naturally, you must work with your biological clock.
In this article, we will define the biological clock. We will, then, talk about the Traditional Chinese Medicine’s body clock and test if it’s true. Finally, we’ll talk about current research on circadian rhythms and some tips on how to work with your biological clock.
What is the Biological Clock?
There are many terms that are used to describe the biological clock, which can be confusing. Let’s work through common terms used to describe the biological clock.
Biological clock – the timing devices that are in nearly every tissue and organ in the body. It may also be called the body clock.
Biological rhythm – patterns of behavior based on stimuli inside and outside the body. Each tissue and organ have their own rhythm. You may also hear the term circadian rhythm used to mean the same.
Circadian rhythm – similar to biological rhythm. When used to talk about sleep, this rhythm is believed to cycle every 24 hours. It’s unknown if every circadian or biological rhythm cycles every 24 hours.
Master clock – this clock is managed by the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus releases hormones that manage appetite and regulate body temperature. All biological clocks, or rhythms, are affected by the master clock. The central clock is another term used for the master clock.
Chronobiology – the study of circadian or biological rhythms.
Why Talk about the Biological Clock?
If every organ and its tasks are managed by circadian rhythms, then you must work with those rhythms to maximize your health. You may not be able to get and stay healthy when you work against those rhythms.
My goal in this article is to explain what areas of your lifestyle seem to be linked with the biological clock. Then, we will talk about how you can work with your biological clock.
We do not yet have a research-based biological clock. So, let’s look at the most well-known biological clock theory we do have today – Traditional Chinese Medicine’s body clock – and test it against research.
Traditional Chinese Medicine’s Body Clock
According to the Traditional Chinese Medicine’s Body Clock (TCMBC), an organ or system has two hours of a 24-hour day where the most energy is directed towards it. During that two-hour window, the amount of energy given to the organ reaches its peak and then begins to decrease over the next 12 hours. The amount of energy given to the organ, then, increases until it reaches its peak during the organ’s two-hour window.
For example, the liver has the most energy between 1 and 3 am. Between 1 and 3 am, the liver is able to complete a larger portion of its tasks. At the 1 to 3 pm window, the liver is getting the least amount of energy to complete its tasks during this time. However, as time gets closer to the 1 to 3 am window, the energy given to the liver increases.
Also according to the TCMBC, symptoms appear in an organ’s two-hour window when something is wrong with the organ. When there has been trauma, negative emotions stir up during an organ’s two-hour window. I did not include a list of symptoms or negative emotions here because I could not find a consistent list.
Side-note: if you really want a list of symptoms and negative emotions, just do a search for “Traditional Chinese Medicine Body Clock symptoms” in a search engine. You’ll find plenty of sites with proposed symptoms.
TCMBC Limitations
Upon researching TCMBC, I could not find any info on who created the theory. I also could not find how the organs and their two-hour windows were determined. The only info I could find was that TCMBC is, supposedly, over 2,500 years old.
It’s possible that the info we need hasn’t been translated yet. It’s also possible that we’ve lost writings on the TCMBC over the years. That being said, we can only test the TCMBC against research today to determine if it’s accurate for us or not.
Before we test the TCMBC against research, here are some of the limitations of applying the theory today:
- Diets are different
- Lifestyles are different
- Environments are different (I.e. industrial revolution)
- Technology (computers, phones, artificial lighting, electricity, etc.) is very different
Since a lot has changed in (supposedly) 2,500 years, we cannot assume that the biological clock is the same today as it was then. Also, please note that the TCMBC was created in China, so it may not apply to those who either do not live in the same geological region or have the same routines as the Chinese did then.
I wanted to, first, bring up the limitations of using TCMBC to make sure that we look at it critically. When researching this theory, I found many people who asserted the body clock was factual 100% of the time. Before that can be said, we must first test the TCMBC against what we confidently know from current research.
Testing the TCMBC
From research, we know that the master clock is largely regulated by light. As light changes throughout the day, the master clock in the hypothalamus sends signals to other organs. These signals regulate the rhythms of the organs.
Side-note: we do not know for sure if every organ has an individual circadian rhythm. It is also unknown how many circadian rhythms there are in the body. There could be as few as a dozen or as many as 100s or 1,000s. More research is needed in this area.
As for individual circadian rhythms, food is a large influencer of organs involved in the digestion and breakdown of food and the use of its nutrients. The liver, stomach, pancreas, gallbladder, and intestines are some of these organs.
What does this mean for the TCMBC?
Since circadian rhythms are largely controlled by the presence and absence of light, the biological clock should change according to the differing amounts of light. However, I could not find any info on whether the TCMBC changes for winter, spring, summer, or fall.
As for food, research shows that circadian rhythms of gastrointestinal organs conform to when food is eaten. Also, food digests at different rates, depending on how much fat, carb, and protein are eaten. This means that unless you eat the same food as the Chinese people 2,500 years ago at the same time they did, then the two-hour windows for GI organs are likely to be different than the ones in the TCMBC. (Assuming that the body consistently works in two-hour windows.)
Unfortunately, we do not know a lot about the patterns of circadian rhythms right now. We have more info on what disrupts individual circadian rhythms. But, we do not yet have a bigger picture of how all the rhythms work together. Until we know more, we cannot say whether the two-hour windows of the TCMBC are true or not.
However, I can say that from the research I’ve read, it seems to be highly unlikely that the body works mechanically in two-hour windows. Rather, it seems like circadian rhythms conform to a person’s habits but are still flexible to short-term changes.
This doesn’t mean that we throw out the TCMBC completely. It could still have some truth in the theory, but I believe it’s a mistake to consider it 100% factual for everyone at all times. To do so would take away from the incredible ability of the body to adapt to lifestyle changes.
What Can Disrupt Circadian Rhythms?
Since we can’t completely depend on the TCMBC to inform us how to work with the biological clock, we must turn to research. We know that circadian rhythms are largely affected by light and food. So, it is likely that disruptions in diet, sleep, and light exposure affect the rhythms the most.
Here are some things we know about circadian rhythm disruptions:
- Sleep disruptions affect both the brain and the gut
- Melatonin production can be stifled if exposure to natural light throughout the day is replaced with synthetic light
- Diet-induced obesity and erratic eating can disrupt or dampen circadian rhythms
- There are clock-controlled genes in organs that are involved in inflammation and metabolism (among other things)
- Stress can disrupt circadian rhythms
- Disrupted circadian rhythms are linked with immune dysfunction
These are only a handful of disruptions to circadian rhythms. I will be going more in-depth about these and other disruptions on my membership site. You can learn more about that here.
Three Ways to Work with Your Biological Clock
So far, we’ve defined common terms around the biological clock and why it’s important to your health. We, then, looked at the Traditional Chinese Medicine’s Body Clock and tested it against current research. Finally, we talked about lifestyle habits that disrupt circadian rhythms.
Now, let’s finish up with how you can work with your biological clock:
- Get 8-9 hours of high-quality, uninterrupted sleep each night
- Structure your eating (check out my intermittent fasting article for structuring your meals)
- Manage your stress before it turns into anxiety
These may seem common sense, but I wanted to make sure you understand why they are important to do. As we talked about above, doing these three things consistently will help balance your circadian rhythms. As you work to balance your circadian rhythms, I believe your body will start to naturally heal itself.
What is your main takeaway after reading this article? How will you now work with your biological clock? Let me know in the comments below!