Another Perspective on How the Great Power of Nature Impacts Our Health
Tim H. Tanaka, Ph.D., D.Ac., RMT, RNCP, BCIAC
Director

As the days become shorter, the temperature slowly cools down, and the leaves change into beautiful fall colors, the barometric pressure becomes increasingly unstable each day before the winter settles in. I have noticed that during this time of the year, more people visit our clinic with acute back pain, flare ups of arthritis and previous injuries, and aggravations of various internal and hormone related conditions. Why is this? Possibly because our body is greatly influenced by the power of nature and more specifically, the barometric pressure.

According to renowned immunologist, Prof. Abo of Niigata University Medical School, the balance of our autonomic nervous system (which controls virtually all of our internal organic function) is influenced by the changes in the barometric pressure. Through autonomic receptors attached to different immune cells, it can also affect the distribution of white blood cells, which play an important role in immune and inflammatory processes. It has been shown that our nervous system shifts more towards sympathetic and granulocyte dominance (active mode) on high pressure days, and parasympathetic and lymphocyte dominance (relaxation mode) on low pressure days. Interestingly, this could be the reason why many historic meditation centers and regions known for longevity are located in mountains at a higher altitude. Have you ever noticed yourself feeling more relaxed or down on rainy days and more energetic and even somewhat hyper on dry, sunny days? If you have chronic pain or illness, you may have also noticed more pain or discomfort on some days for no apparent reason. There are some scientific explanations for the fluctuations of mood or symptoms on a day to day basis.

Our physiological functions are not designed to be stable. They have been shown to fluctuate in a dynamic fashion not only on a daily basis, but also in specific trends corresponding with various cyclic rhythms of nature, which are influenced by our solar system. The variety of rhythmic fluctuations in our biological process are now being studied in a recently evolved field called chronobiology. Many doctors have noticed that patients respond differently to pharmacological interventions depending on the time of administration. Drug administration protocols which coordinate with the patient’s chronobiological rhythms (i.e., chronotherapy) are increasingly used in many modern medical settings, with one example being cancer treatment centers. A number of studies have demonstrated that time-adjusted chemotherapy (circadian rhythm-modulated chemotherapy) provided more efficient absorption and utilization of the drugs while minimizing the side effects when compared to traditional chemotherapy administration.

It should be noted that the concept of chronotherapy has been a fundamental universal tenet of ancient Chinese medicine for thousands of years. In our Japanese acupuncture system at The Pacific Wellness Institute, we actively utilize the moment by moment fluctuation of patients’ biological rhythm in order to fully maximize the treatment effect with the least amount of stimulation. Some of my old patients may have noticed a very bulky watch I used to wear everyday. It tells me the time but it is actually a wrist altimeter and weather detection device with a sensitive barometer inside. In some cases, we further fine tune the treatment depending on the day and weather conditions.

Autumn is a season of transition and is often a stressful period for many people. In a physiological perspective, it is also a stressful period for our body which must adjust to the change in barometric pressure and temperature. Some individuals react more than others to such environmental changes and a variety of uncomfortable symptoms may occur as a result. It is important to strengthen our internal homeostatic regulation systems and keep our bodies within an ideal balance in order to cope with stress from environmental changes.

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