I have always believed in “big picture” medicine which is why I always look at hormone health in conjunction with lifestyle, nutrition, genetics, toxin exposure, supplements and overall health. Your body is a complex and interconnected operating system. That’s why I am really excited to see that medicine is evolving and moving away from viewing health as fragmented, isolated symptoms. Currently what I am most excited about is the new application of quantum mechanics to biology (called quantum biology). A quantum is the smallest discrete unit of a phenomenon. For example a quantum of light is a photon and a quantum of electricity is an electron. What we now know is that these smallest particles behave differently following quantum laws instead of the classic laws of physics we were taught in school. It’s mind blowing stuff, but I won’t go into wave-particle duality, superposition and entanglement. What I want to bring to your attention is that these smallest quantum particles act in our bodies at a foundational level and are affected by our greater environment including being affected by the earth and cosmos -truly big picture health concepts! It’s been fascinating studying quantum biology, but I like to boil things down to take away lessons I can apply in real life. So let me present some things based on quantum biology that I have incorporated into my own health routine.
1. Grounding/Earthing
We are electric beings and it turns out we need electric nutrition. We need electrons in every cell in our bodies to run functions vital to life. Your mitochondria are just one important example. You have thousands of mitochondria in every cell in your body (except your RBC’s) and they need electrons to generate energy for you. Energy intense tissues like your heart, brain and muscle need a lot of electrons. Electrons are also used to reduce inflammation, improve immune function, increase blood flow, balance the nervous system, and improve sleep etc, etc – foundational health functions. We can break food down to create electrons but we can also gain electrons from contact with the surface of the earth. The earth is negatively charged and full of electrons which can be transferred to us. The problem is that in the modern world we tend to be electron deficient since we eat processed foods and live indoors. Our ancestors walked barefoot on the earth, had their hands in nature touching dirt/ plants, and slept on the ground. Even before I learned the science, I always knew I felt better around water or in the woods and it turns out both these environments have more negatively charged electrons.
Health Yourself Action – So now I try to daily spend time touching the earth by putting my bare feet or feet in leather shoes on the ground (synthetic shoes block the transfer of electrons) or using my bare hands to touch the earth or a plant rooted in the earth. I can tell you that I feel better after harvesting this free supply of beneficial electrons.
2. Circadian Rhythm/Setting My Biological Clocks
Humans evolved with exposure to sunlight. It turns out our cells have clocks that respond to photons of light which tell them when to run different functions- otherwise we would have chaos. An example is that when morning blue light enters your eyes it is transmitted to the SCN (suprachiasmatic nucleus). The SCN then begins oscillating at the frequency of that blue light sending its message throughout the body. Morning light, it turns out, affects our hormones, increasing adrenal, thyroid, and female hormone production. Morning light also increases brain neurotransmitters which improve mood and alertness. Red light fading to darkness in the evening signals time for regeneration, repair and melatonin for sleep. Just like we need electron nutrition we also need photon nutrition for our body to function properly. Unfortunately, in the modern world, we are exposed to indoor artificial light and tech screens and we rarely see the proper light at the proper time of the day. Just another reason why we struggle with hormone balance, brain neurotransmitter production and sleep.
Health Yourself Action – Get the Circadian App or learn more at circadian.life – I have the circadian app and it reminds me to get outside at sunrise for at least 3 minutes to let that blue light enter my eyes in the morning. I find that viewing the morning light is also a good time to ground myself to the earth and get those electrons.
In the evening I try to minimize the blue light emitted from most light bulbs and tech screens. If I can’t avoid the blue light I wear blue blocker glasses. My circadian app reminds me to do this and it reminds me to see the waning light/red light in the evening by seeing the sunset. I know we can’t do everything we are supposed to do for our health each day, but this is almost non-negotiable for me. I actually feel so much better when I do it and it’s just such a great way to bookend my day.
3. Quantum food
It turns out most of the beneficial foods in our diet are actually electron donors giving us beneficial electrons and photon donors releasing the photons of light that they have absorbed. FOOD IS ALWAYS FOUNDATIONAL to our health.
4. Quantum Supplements
Many of the beneficial supplements are recommended because they are in fact electron donors which can stabilize harmful free radicals in the body (which cause damage and inflammation). They usually call this type of supplement an antioxidant. As with most things in the body, balance is key. You want enough electron donors to reduce inflammation, but you don’t want to suppress all inflammation since an appropriate low level of inflammation can be beneficial. If you get electrons from the earth or food it’s hard to get too many but chronic use of high dose supplements which contain electron donors could be harmful. I tend to only supplement with high dose antioxidants short term when inflammation is high – such as with injury, illness or high stress. My go to antioxidants for acute elevated inflammation are liposomal vitamin C. WholeScripts – Dr Mercola Liposomal Vitamin C 1 Tbsp several times a day for a few days. Vitamin C works mainly in watery fluids to reduce inflammation. For lipid spaces in the body I use Alpha Lipoic acid, a universal antioxidant because it can get into watery and lipid spaces in the body WholeScripts – Xymogen AlAmax Cr one in am and one in pm with a meal for a few days.
This newsletter is my attempt to pass on valuable information I have gleaned from sitting in front of so many women over the years. I encourage you not to get overwhelmed with all the recommendations made for women’s health especially on social media. You are THE expert on yourself!! Use your intuition – recommendations need to resonate with what you feel is best for you and they need to fit into your current lifestyle. My best advice is to always start with the health habits that are rooted in nature. These habits are always foundational and will have the biggest impact. A bonus is that they are usually very accessible and free. Get to the complicated expensive recommendations when you have the time, bandwidth and money.
