7

Change Your Life, Change Your Microbiome

Restoring the Natural Intelligence of the Body

Before you heal someone, ask him if he’s willing to give up the things that make him sick.

HIPPOCRATES

Given the yin and the yang in activity of our microbial counterparts and their metabolites, the key to a healthy self may not lie only or at all in supplementation. It may be that what we need to do is to restore the natural intelligence in the function of our human cells and in our microbes, the communication between the two, and the way the body benefits from them and their metabolites. This is a key concept in Eastern medicine. Prevention and treatment involve recognizing potential obstacles to the intelligent balance of the body and removing those factors. Obvious examples are to eliminate triggers, for example, gluten for someone with celiac disease or peanuts for someone with a peanut allergy.

These are extreme examples because the response to these triggers happens immediately in most cases. For other situations, the trigger may be something that is just pushing the person over the top of the homeostatic threshold. This could be an irritant, overindulgence in caffeine, alcohol, or anything for that matter, or how the person is eating. If eating is irregular or happens while the person is upset, these are also triggers. Other eating habits that may irritate digestion include eating before bed, overexposure to social media and close-up screens, the news, “toxic” behavior from others, or toxic thinking.

After the obstacle or primary trigger is removed, the system may need to be reset. How we do this is the trick. For some, the damage may be so deep that it may not be possible to fully reverse the disorder. This could be for a number of reasons, for example, a genetic predisposition that gets activated or the presence of unknown obstacles in the cascade of imbalance. Healing may be inhibited by inability to change a toxic job or work differently, or to eat well, or by the inability to afford optimal treatment, supplements, or medication. In a conversation with Buddhist spiritual teacher Lama Lhanang Rinpoche, we concluded the primary contributing factor is the mind. A stuck mental/emotional pattern, or an attachment to something that blocks the healing process deep within the psyche is probably the most difficult obstacle of all to overcome. It involves consistent attention and not only the resolve, but the willingness to be vulnerable and surrender to life and truth in order for a stuck mental pattern to be overcome. These we call not just karma, but samskaras, or patterns, in Eastern philosophy. They are tightly wound knots deep within the psyche and body.

The process of healing the gut, including the microbiome, may not only alleviate systemic or seemingly unrelated symptoms, but allow greater tolerance to triggers that previously would have brought on serious illness. I know several people who have been diagnosed with celiac disease who can now expose themselves to gut-barrier offenders like caffeine and alcohol, or can now tolerate minimal exposure to gluten on an irregular basis. It’s interesting to note that I’ve had two clients who were diagnosed clinically with celiac disease but are able to eat glutencontaining products in Italy. This suggests to me that there may be more at play in American wheat than just gluten. Perhaps the genetic modifications have altered the surface of the protein, or maybe the body is reacting to pesticide residue, or some kind of fungal or microbial contamination during transport and storage. There may be a natural sensitivity, but perhaps it’s the added assault that pushes the immune system over the edge.

Getting back to the current discussion, Eastern medicine doesn’t stop at supplementation, and in Eastern medicine we generally don’t leave people on supplements of any kind—teas, decoctions, pills, tinctures, powders, and so on—for more than a few months at a time. At least I usually don’t. Supplements are always being tweaked because there are stages to the process of healing, and they vary from person to person. Either the initial trigger is removed, or the lacking substance added, and the body figures out how to right the situation on its own—or it needs to be given the space, or nudge, and resources to move to the next stage.

When the body is given the space and resources to heal, unless it’s in a final stage of disease progression, it will usually do so. Having a good practitioner to assess what is still out of balance along the way is key. There are many variables to the process and they often combine into a confusing knot of information and activity that needs to be rooted out and carefully untangled. This is where the eight principles of diagnosis of Chinese medicine can be very useful (see the box on the facing page). Is the client’s inner environment cold or hot, and where? Is it more yin or yang? Is the imbalance generated internally or is it the result of an external invader? As part of this line of questioning we ask to what degree and depth is the offender, and what is the best way to deal with it? And last, is the environment one of excess or deficiency? Maybe it’s both. Perhaps there is excess manifesting in one place or way and deficiency in another. Assessment can be tricky and overwhelming and that is cause to seek out a highly regarded practitioner. This applies also to practitioners. We often try to treat ourselves, but it can be difficult to objectively self-assess.

So what do the Eastern medicine principles that directly influence the health of the microbiome actually entail in practice? The first, from a diet perspective, is the recognition that all food is medicine and is not inherently bad, and, conversely, that all food can cause imbalance. The second is that each of us has innate tendencies that predispose us to having certain sensitivities. These sensitivities are not allergies or even clinical sensitivities, but subclinical sensitivities. These subclinical sensitivities are usually to foods we do best eating in moderation in order to keep our constitutional tendencies in balance. We receive subtle cues from our inner physician through our unique language of feelings, senses, intuitions, and outright messages. Messages often come through the quality of bowel movements, as we learned from chapter 3.

 

The Eight Principles of Chinese Medicine

Patterns of Disharmony

Eastern medicine relies not only on symptoms but also on patterns of disharmony in the body. These measure an excess or deficiency in the qi (vitality), blood, yin (fluids and substance), and yang (energetics, metabolism, and heat).

  1. Yin is, generally speaking, cold, moist, stationary, and heavy.
  2. Yang is warm, hot, rises up, and is mobile.
  3. Interior refers to patterns that are generated from deep within the body and mind.
  4. Exterior patterns are those that enter from outside of the body, such as an external pathogen.
  5. Heat means there are excess heat signs and symptoms, such as a sensation of heat; red face, eyes, or skin; or inflammation.
  6. Cold indicates a subjective aversion to cold, as well as other symptoms that may occur when cold is present, such as pain, oftentimes due to deficiency.
  7. Deficiency describes inadequacy in the qi, blood, fluids, yin, yang, or essence.
  8. Excess is used to describe a pattern where a bodily substance builds up. This can be an accumulation of qi, blood, fluids, yin, or yang. It can also point to one of the six excesses: wind, coldness, heat, dryness, dampness, or summerheat.

 

There is so much rich practical advice for improving health and potentially balancing the microbiome. There are studies on a smattering of these recommendations, and some have already been highlighted in the text. Others that aren’t here are readily accessible via your nearest search engine. For example, do you want to know how coffee affects the microbiome? Input “coffee” and “microbiome.” It turns out it’s high in antioxidants and is actually a prebiotic said to help balance the liver; studies show that regular consumption may help reduce the risk of liver cancer and other liver diseases. I think we can assume that taken in moderation in small amounts, good quality coffee can have beneficial physiological effects. Remember, no food is inherently bad. In Chinese medicine, we say coffee “smooths the liver qi” in small quantities, less than six ounces a day. The same is true for wine and beer, which are also considered prebiotics, or food for our microbes, with positive healthful effects in moderation. In Eastern medicine we use wine to administer herbs under certain conditions, and on its own it is known to be warming and increase circulation, again in moderation. That means small, inconsistent doses.

I’m not advising loading up on alcohol and coffee. I am merely illustrating that according to both systems of medicine, Western and Eastern, there are recognized health benefits to even the highest offenders on the “do not consume” list of most diets. In addition, we are seeing that food can be used for good, or it can contribute to greater imbalance. Coffee in excess can aggravate the liver qi and cause nervousness and palpitations. Alcohol in excess creates an unsettled and confused mental state, and can have a multitude of negative consequences. Both can be detrimental in any amount to someone with a sensitivity, subclinical or otherwise, and in the cases of permeable gut walls, can increase that permeability.

There are innumerable studies that have yet to be done, or perhaps never will be done, on the influence on the microbiome of more specific aspects of lifestyle, mental activity, environment, and diet. For those activities we can combine the rudimentary knowledge we have about the microbiome, much of which is in the beginning of this book, with Eastern medicine principles about how the mind and body work and their relationship to the environment, and add personal experience and common sense to figure out how to balance it. Now that you have a grounding in the importance of the microbiome on your health, and are armed with the knowledge that there is a wisdom within you that is capable of great discernment and guidance, you can move forward with understanding the guidelines and practices that have been systematically outlined by the Eastern traditions over millennia.

The Lung-Large Intestine-Skin Axis

First, take a deep breath. Breathing well and staying aware of the breath helps us to detoxify about 70 percent of bodily toxins. Breathing well:

In the chapter 1 discussion of the lung microbiome, we learned that although many of the inhabitants of that area are transient, there is consistency as to which microbes tend to be there. It is when there is an invader that the immune system is alerted and the inflammatory process starts. An infection is an alert that there is an overabundance of a pathogen or even too much of a beneficial microbe somewhere it shouldn’t be. Keeping the lungs moving fully may help us to expel potential invaders, keep microbes from sticking, and keep the transients on the move. For all the reasons mentioned above, deep breathing is necessary for optimal immunity and to expel potential problems from the body. Deep diaphragmatic breathing also helps to clear heat from the lower body. When we breathe well we not only expel toxins that otherwise may stay in circulation, we also utilize efficient detoxification of the body without taxing the gut or the liver unnecessarily with the task.

The highest concentration of blood vessels to the lungs are in the lower lobes. If we aren’t making optimal use of this area by doing deep, diaphragmatic breathing, we may not be completely oxygenating the blood or eliminating toxins. Chronic shallow or fast breathing into the chest using the neck, pecs, and upper-back muscles requires energy the body could be using for cleanup and rejuvenation. Instead we exhaust ourselves by being tense and not fully allowing air in or completely emptying our lungs on the out breath.

The liver is actually attached to the diaphragm. In Eastern medicine a major protocol for resolving imbalances is to keep the liver energies cool, calm, and easygoing. When it is stuck in position, not being squeezed and expanded by the diaphragm, vitality stagnates. We become cranky and frustrated, and digestion is oftentimes adversely affected. By breathing deeply, we enhance the mobility of all the internal structures, allowing for more complete circulation, detoxification, and transformation. Just like the body in general, organs and tissues that are soft, moist, warm (not hot), and toned are much healthier than those that are rigid, inflexible, inflamed, and lack tone. Well-respected Chinese medicine oncology expert and teacher Tai Lahans calls the diaphragm, “the dynamic heat exchanger” between the upper and lower jiao. This means that in Eastern medicine, inflammation can be alleviated or avoided to some extent by chronic, healthy movement of the diaphragm.

 

The Breath at Rest

It’s important to add a note here about what a healthy, natural breath is. On average, it is optimal to be breathing 12–16 times per minute. Twelve times or below—especially in those practicing yoga or qigong, and barring some abnormality—is optimal. Anything above sixteen is considered a form of hyperventilation, or an indication that the nervous system is on high alert. I’d also like to make a distinction about shallow breathing. When at rest, it’s normal to feel as if the breath is shallow. If the body doesn’t require big breathing for physiological or activity related purposes, we should actually be taking effortless breaths that feel like they mainly enter the chest. The distinction I’d like to make is that there’s a difference between this breathing, that may feel shallow because it isn’t huge like a sigh or intentional belly breath, and fast breathing. I think a lot of the time we call what the breath is at rest shallow breathing, yet what we think of as the negative connotation of shallow breathing is actually accelerated breathing. This fast or quick breathing is the kind that utilizes accessory breathing muscles as opposed to the diaphragm as the primary breathing muscle.

 

Holding in the belly is a common cause of chronic, shallow, fast breathing. We are indoctrinated to believe we need to have a flat abdomen to be attractive. At a young age, girls and boys alike start sucking in their bellies. This chronic holding may actually be sending a message to the brain that we aren’t safe. Contracting the abdomen is an aspect of the fight-or-flight response, as it is a survival mechanism to protect the internal organs from trauma. It becomes problematic when we experience chronic stress because the constant low-grade fight-or-flight reactivity causes the belly to remain in a state of contraction. When this happens we unconsciously breathe more shallowly, quickly, and less efficiently and healthfully, and this chronic holding may have an adverse effect on gut function and the microbiome. The body, mind, and microbiome are affected by everything we do or don’t do. Without a nice soft belly, particularly above the navel, that allows for the correct rhythmic movement of the diaphragm and orbit of excursion for the internal organs, it makes sense that all three will suffer.

There is an intimate connection between the lung and large intestine pathways in Eastern medicine. Speaking in terms of the shen (spirit), or consciousness, the lungs are responsible for the management of grief. Any grief can impede the optimal functioning of the lungs. The large intestine is tasked with being present and releasing, both metaphorically and literally. Grief is a holding; release is a letting go, the act of no longer grasping. One can see how these two are connected, grief and letting go, they are like two sides of the same coin. They both involve not dwelling in the past, but being in present-moment awareness. Even if there is grief, being present with it allows it to be processed. In that presence there is acceptance, and when there is acceptance there is a release.

When one organ isn’t working well, another suffers. The lungs are tasked with sending vitality downward to help expel waste from the large intestine. If this isn’t happening, oftentimes because of a held-in or tight abdomen and a rigid diaphragm with shallow or quick breathing, the elimination will suffer. This can lead to various forms of constipation. If the constipation is severe, heat may be created and rise up, unable to dissipate via diaphragmatic movement, and allow for greater stagnation of waste in the large intestine. If the large intestine cannot send vitality downward, it can restrict the downward movement of the vitality of the lungs as well. It’s easy to see the vicious cycle that can occur with this dynamic and make way for an adverse change in microbial balance in the large intestine. If there is stagnation in the large intestine the lungs can’t do their job well, and this may result in subpar lung function, as mentioned above.

Thanks to studies done thus far on the human exposome, we know that exhaled microbial metabolites can be measured and linked to the metabolites produced by the microbial inhabitants colonizing the large intestine.1 In addition to a link between the lungs and large intestine in Eastern medicine, there is a strong link between them both and the skin. Toxins that build in the large intestine will often manifest as skin issues. If the energetics of the lungs are not optimal, the energetic or spirit that animates them fully, called the po, can float outward toward the skin and make the skin, via the nervous system, more sensitive. If the large intestine is adversely affected by too much mental activity, this nervous-system disruption may manifest as a vata imbalance, or imbalance of air in the system. This can be experienced as flightiness, dryness, nervousness, jitters, inability to sit still, constant movement, insomnia, or anxiety. The skin can also be diagnostic for the state of the physical form of the large intestine. According to a translation of the Ling Shu, or Spiritual Axis, by late Chinese medicine expert Giovanni Maciocia, the condition of the skin reflects the inner landscape of the large intestine. For example, when the skin is tight, it can mean that the large intestine is tight, too, also the thickness of the skin reflects the thickness or thinness of the large intestine walls.2

If we want to clean ourselves, we bathe. To clean our insides we drink pure water, breathe clean air, and eat whole foods. Likewise we should nourish our skin, apply rubbing techniques and pure oils, and avoid products with added chemical surfactants and other possible irritants. This is important to the skin microbiome and metabolome. The metabolome of the skin includes all the by-products or metabolites of the cells and microbes that serve as chemical messengers and regulators of bodily functions, such as hormones and the like.3 It also includes the molecules left as residue on the skin that may interfere with cell-to-cell and microbe-to-cell messaging, such as additives in skin lotion, shampoo, hair treatments, cosmetics, and perfume.4 We should actually be feeding the skin microbiome with what we apply, not disturbing its balance.

To cleanse and balance our lungs and large intestine, including the microbiome, and nourish them and it, we need to breathe well, inhaling fresh, clean air (as opposed to stagnant air) as often as possible. The lungs are partially nourished by the diversity of microbes we breathe, as the gut microbiome, largely in the large intestine, is nourished by the diversity of foods we eat.

The Breath Is the Bridge

The breath is the bridge between the body and our conscious awareness, between the body and our vitality, between the body and the mind, and between the body and our awareness of truth. The breath also connects us to the consciousness and memories anchored in the bodily tissues. The first step to breathing well for you and your microbiome is to be a good listener and accept what it is that your body is saying.

Yogavisharada B.N.S. Iyengar teaches that the lungs are like a rich web. This web needs to be gently stretched over time or it will be damaged by making it do more than it has the resiliency for in the moment. Iyengar was talking about breath control techniques, or pranayama practices, but it is the same with even the most seemingly innocuous deep breath that we demand of ourselves, believing we “should” be able to do it even if we can’t. If a deep breath feels constricted and inhaling is causing stress, forcing it is not making progress toward optimal healthy breathing. Instead, it may be creating an obstacle to that end.

It may sound too simple to acknowledge the power of the breath, especially when there is no evidence of lung disease, so the assumption is that the breath is just fine. I think most people will find that it is not. Either they are uncomfortable with focusing on it or will find there is an imbalance on a gross or subtle level. There is an inherent vulnerability in opening to and accepting the breath as it is in the moment. Many messages from the body and mind are often hidden beneath the breath, beneath the diaphragm. Focusing on the breath allows these messages to percolate to the surface of the awareness, and although the breath brings a sense of spaciousness, the messages can be accompanied by a myriad of uncomfortable memories, feelings, and bodily sensations. This is part of healing, allowing for the polarity inherent in life, the grasping and the release, to manifest in whatever way is needed.

In chapter 5 we touched upon the five spirits, or mental/emotional aspects of consciousness seated in the body. The body is the anchor and the vehicle for the experience of these states of awareness and emotion. The breath integrates the body with the less tangible parts of our existence: our bodily consciousness, our vitality, our mind and emotions, and our truth. This is why yogis practice breath awareness and control exercises. They are simultaneously increasing awareness, spaciousness, and connection to intuition or inner knowing while intentionally directing their vitality. Martial artists do this as well. Whether internal (managing one’s own vitality) or external (involving interaction with another’s vitality) martial arts, there is some aspect of breath awareness and using the breath to direct qi or vitality. Actor and martial artist Bruce Lee was an exceptional example of this. He moved with grace and fluidity, speed and great agility. He was able to perceive what his opponent would do a split second before the person even initiated the movement. Science has acknowledged that we are actually perceiving reality a split second after it manifests. Ask any acupuncturist how this works. Often before the client reacts to feeling the connection to, movement, or rush of qi while being needled, the practitioner can feel it. This is true present-moment awareness. These traits were not intrinsic to Bruce Lee, nor did he acquire them solely by brute bodily practices. He internally focused on the wisdom and mystery of being—on the breath—and recognized the importance of self-knowledge and the connection to all that is.

The conscious awareness or experience of this connection can be realized through the intention of breath awareness practice and paying attention to feelings and emotions. They can teach us, and always do if we listen and allow.

image

Breath Awareness Practice

There are many things at play with the breath. You must utilize your presence and objective awareness, as well as your ability to release expectations and attachment to things being a certain way, and make space for the wise teacher within you, your inner physician, to come through and gently coax the breath into a healthier pattern.

Reverse breathing is a technique in internal martial arts and advanced yoga practices that is done temporarily and intentionally to achieve a specific response. When it is done unconsciously by people who aren’t advanced practitioners being guided by a qualified teacher, it may create a disturbance in the mind. I was unable to locate any specific research on the gut microbiome–brain connection in relationship to breathing, other than that studied on specific microbial populations in the lungs in diseased vs. healthy states. It makes sense, though, that since every single thing we do affects the microbiome somehow, and since there is communication via the vagus nerve between the brain and the gut microbiome, that the timing and rhythm of the diaphragm during the breathing cycle would have an impact on what messages are being communicated and how the body’s reactions to them are making us feel.

It is not uncommon for a reverse breathing pattern, or fast, shallow breathing pattern, to be accompanied by such ailments as generalized anxiety, jaw clenching, teeth grinding, panic attacks, insomnia, and a sense of overwhelm or reduced stress tolerance. No doubt the microbiome plays a role in this. Anyone with experience in breathing patterns and having a well-developed sense of embodiment with the breath will acknowledge that the breath is just as important as what you’re putting in your mouth.

Once you’ve spent a few weeks observing and practicing the allowing with only the slight interference of expanding the breath boundaries, you can begin working on the wave pattern. Like the spaciousness that happens in the body when the breath comes in, the wave is not well defined. I am dividing it here into parts, but really, it should end up feeling like the body is moving all at once with the breath, like there is no dividing line. We focus on a two-part wave action here for simplicity’s sake, but you may find that it is more like three-part wave action, and far more involved than that, that it feels like it is all moving at once, and that it involves the entire length of the spine and the structures attached to it.

Over time this practice will bring whatever needs to be redirected or cleared from your circuitry and bodily tissues to the surface awareness for processing. All the while everything will be shifting toward a more healthful state of being in body, mind, spirit, and microbiome.

image

By slowly reorganizing the breathing pattern and increasing awareness, unlimited sensations, memories, and internal experiences will manifest. In the process, unexpected things may begin to change: better sleep, outer glow, improved digestion, shifting perspective, greater sense of well-being and tolerance of stress, less anxiety, and more spontaneous presence, appreciation, and joy.

The Science of Cycles

Being aware of cycles of time such as life span, solar cycle, year with its seasonal influences and observances, lunar cycle/month, and daily cycle are foundational in Eastern medicine theory, so I devoted a whole chapter to this topic in my previous book. There is a current in nature that ebbs and flows, and its waves lap upon the surface of the other cycles. All of the cycles are occurring simultaneously, like latitude, longitude, and time intersecting at the core of each living being. For our purposes here, we will talk about the seasonal cycles and daily cycles, and how the microbiome changes within these.

Just as birds and butterflies have an internal timing device that tells them when to migrate for the season, so do humans. It’s called a biological clock and is part of an entire field of biological processes.5 There are several cycles recognized within this field:

In Ayurveda the infradian rhythm is recognized in what’s called ritucharya, or yearly/seasonal cycles. In Eastern medicine we recognize eating according to the season as an aspect of ritucharya.

Daily cycles, which include the circadian rhythm and the ultradian rhythm, are called dinacharya, or daily routine. Eating at specific windows of time during the day is an aspect of dinacharya. You don’t need to remember the Sanskrit terminology, as the guidelines are present regardless of which Eastern medical tradition you consult. The point is that knowledge of these cycles existed long before now, along with an awareness of the resulting imbalances that occur from not attending to them.

With regard to seasonal cycles, it is recommended to eat according to what is naturally available at any given time of year. Of course, those of us fortunate to have plentiful access to pretty much everything all year long will also choose foods that are not in season. Nonetheless, the body knows what is best for it at particular times. Dr. John Douillard explains this beautifully in articles on his LifeSpa website, as well as in his books. According to Douillard, the gut microbiome changes in time with the shift in seasons, readying us to digest the foods that are widely available.7 He describes three seasons of growing and harvesting and one season of dormancy, and outlines which foods are most appropriate in which seasons.

Winter: Nuts, seeds, meats, and more fat and protein are advisable.

Spring: Eat a low-fat diet full of leafy greens and berries.

Summer: Gravitate toward cooling, high-carbohydrate fruits and veggies.8

Autumn: I recommend seasonal harvest foods with lots of easy-to-digest, nourishing broths and stews.

Living beings—including our microorganisms—have biological clocks and rhythms. A study done on blue-green algae confirmed this. In humans, the 24-hour circadian rhythm, specifically the sleep/wake cycle, is believed to be regulated by exposure to darkness and light, and the activity of melatonin. In algae, though, it was found that although light exposure can reset their rhythm if it is thrown off, they largely regulate themselves according to metabolic signaling, through the circulation of ATP (adenosine triphosphate, the energy-carrying molecule) and ADP (adenosine diphosphate, also an energy-carrying molecule).9 Humans, on the other hand, have a built in sleep-wake cycle based upon sunlight. Recently this knowledge was confirmed by Nobel Prize–winning circadian clock researchers who described the molecular cause of the internal clock. They found a gene that makes a protein that builds up inside cells during the day, but degrades at night.10 These day/night rhythms affect everything from how the body metabolizes food to behavior, hormonal activity, body temperature, and sleep.11 See diagram (p. 165) for how the daily clock influences the mind and body.

image

This image illustrates the circadian clock.

The Night/Day Cycle

Many of us have heard of melatonin, and that it is related to sleep. It is a hormone that the brain secretes in response to lack of sunlight, and it changes with the seasons.12 This is aligned with Eastern medicine and the solar cycle, which brings changes in our physiology throughout the year. In terms of sleep, melatonin secretion begins when the sun goes down. Its duration lengthens in winter and gets shorter in summer in response to the presence of more sunlight.13 Its secretion begins around 9:00 p.m. and subsides as daylight hours begin, by 7:30 in the morning.14

Eastern medicine teaches that we should be asleep just after dark, and definitely by 10:00 p.m., and that we should wake up before melatonin secretion subsides completely, or between 5:00 and 7:00 a.m. Going to bed after 10:00 p.m. can cause a second wind and difficulty falling asleep. Waking up later in the morning or sleeping well beyond the cessation of melatonin secretion can cause one to feel groggy and foggy. Blue light from technical devices is renowned for interfering with the sleep/wake cycle. Good sleep hygiene, therefore, involves not only going to bed before 10:00, but limiting exposure to blue light in the preceding time period. Most devices now have blue-light dimmers built into the settings. If you must be up late on a backlit device, it is best to use this setting. Opticians often recommend blue-light inhibitors in prescription lenses. However, if blue light is partially responsible for inhibiting melatonin production, then wearing these all day may send the body the wrong signal. It may be more beneficial to have two pairs of glasses, a pair to be worn during the day when you want blue light to help keep you awake, and blue light–blocking glasses for the evening to allow the body to naturally adjust to the absence of light.

What does all of this have to do with the microbiome? Quite a bit, actually. I mentioned in the introduction that certain microbes are activated by metabolism, but by and large, metabolism is activated by the sleep/wake cycle, including the activity of the microbiome. The microbiome is influenced not only by what we eat but by when we eat.15 To foster a greater diversity of microbes, eating is recommended during daylight hours only, more in the morning and less later in the day.16 In the book What to Eat When, Dr. Michael Roizen and his coauthors, Michael Crupain and Ted Spiker, cite studies conducted on gut microbiomes and the influence of the circadian clock showing that gut flora are more active early in the day, and less so at night. During the early part of the day they influence the body to metabolize and grow cells. In the evening and at night they influence genes that put the body into detoxification mode.17

In addition, people who eat closer to 8:00 p.m. or later are more insulin resistant.18 This indicates the body doesn’t metabolize glucose the same way at night as it does during the day, and stores it as fat. Glucose is best metabolized during the early part of the day, when the body is most active and the muscles need energy.19 This could mean that a preventive measure for prediabetes and a lifestyle adjustment for diabetics may be to change when, not just what, they are eating. The highest energy time of the day is between 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.20 This means we should be consuming the majority of our food between these hours. In fact, Eastern teachings emphasize the importance of eating our largest meal either in the morning or for lunch. This is when the body has the most strength and ability to burn the most calories. The strength of our digestion is greatest when the sun is at its peak. As above, so below. Between midmorning and early afternoon is when the function of the spleen qi/agni/digestive fire is at its height for the day.

Eastern medicine has recognized this for centuries. For yogis and serious meditators, most of their food is “front-ended” to the early daylight hours. Lama Lhanang Rinpoche once told me that in monasteries the monks stop eating around noon. They are on a schedule that follows the daylight. It isn’t just that they are living according to the light, however. They believe that we house millions of living entities in our bodies that are most active in the morning. The activity of these entities begins declining by noon, or very soon after that. Lama told me that eating later than that is not good for these sentient beings because they may become overwhelmed or overburdened by a heavy meal when their energy is waning. Ahimsa, or refraining from harming any living being, is both a yogic and Buddhist principle, and it includes our microbiome and ourselves. It is a form of subtle violence to violate the natural laws that, if followed, keep us and our precious little entities thriving.

This one anecdote may not be enough to cause most people to want to change when they eat, or even the awareness of the scientific backing of the practice of front-ending meals. What is undeniable is firsthand experience. When I was growing up, my family ate dinner between 5:00 and 6:00 p.m. every night, as did most of the other families in my neighborhood, so this is achievable. Try not eating at night for a few weeks, then try having your largest meal for breakfast or lunch. This may mean hot cereal like oatmeal for dinner, and a dinner meal for breakfast. Another option is to make your largest meal of the day lunch, and have something broth-based or easily digestible for dinner. You could also try having a small portion of food for dinner, maybe half what you’d normally eat. If you’re waiting for someone to come home to eat who normally eats at 8:00 p.m. or later, just have tea while you sit together. Or if this is your usual dinner time, have something light, such as broth or thin, cooked cereal that’s easy to digest. There are ways to eat in better alignment with your body and the natural cycles that require more mental determination than anything else. Give it a try for two weeks and see for yourself. Chances are that you’ll discover the real obstacle to living more harmoniously arises from habits, outdated beliefs, and the stubbornness of one’s own mind.

Before leading clients in a “cleanse,” which I prefer to call a “dietary reset,” I usually do one myself. The last time I did this I bumped up the time for dinner to happen between 4:00 and 5:30 p.m. at the latest, and had something very light. If I felt hungry later, I had some tea, and that usually took care of it, or I ate something healthy and small. Within two weeks I couldn’t go through a day at work without people telling me how good I looked. I felt lighter and had more energy, slept better, had fewer cravings, and was satiated with simple foods. I also realized how much my mind and bad habits had to do with eating late, eating too much, and eating things I really shouldn’t. I will outline a customizable dietary reset regimen in the next chapter.

Another circadian guideline recognized centuries ago in the East is to go to bed earlier. The old adage is that every hour of sleep one gets before midnight is like two hours compared to the hours after. This is true according to the organ clock. By the time 10:00 p.m. rolls around, if we aren’t asleep, we are prone to a second wind. This is a time when we should be fast asleep, as our deepest sleep occurs by 2:00 a.m., and melatonin starts decreasing and shuts off by 7:30 a.m. According to the organ clock of Eastern medicines, detoxification mode amps up by 10:00 p.m. This means that if we aren’t already asleep, not only do we not enter fully into scavenge and detox mode, we may actually start ingesting things again. We also may not get the optimal predeepest sleep hours in to allow for deep, restful, rejuvenating sleep. The hours from 1:00 to 3:00 a.m. are liver time. This is when the liver energy is dominant and the liver is hard at work cleaning our blood of toxins. If we aren’t deeply asleep for this, we may be missing out on a massive boon to our health, and possibly setting ourselves up for imbalance. I can’t count how many people are awake between these hours, either because they haven’t fallen asleep yet or because they’ve woken up during this time and are often unable to get back to sleep. If the liver energy is taxed or is lacking in any fluids or nutrition, the vitality and consciousness of the liver cannot be peaceful. They rise up and wake us, letting us know that there is an imbalance here. We need to go to bed earlier, stop eating before dark (or ideally, dusk), avoid liver-aggravating food and drink, adopt a good bedtime ritual, or practice liver soothing and smoothing practices such as breath work, gentle yoga, or meditation, or some combination of all of the above. There is evidence that poor or disturbed sleep adversely affects the diversity of the microbiome.21 Sadly enough, it takes only two days of disturbed or inadequate sleep in a row to start decreasing beneficial flora counts in the gut.22

The main takeaways from this chapter for optimizing your health by nourishing you and your microbial inhabitants are to:

  • Breathe well.
  • Reduce stress.
  • Use natural skin products.
  • Eat nourishing foods.
  • Eat earlier.
  • Sleep better.
  • Sleep earlier.