Shedding Light on Arthritis

Most everyone is familiar with time-lapse photography, when we watch – within a few moments’ time – a flower unfold and blossom over the period of a day. This method of photography was pioneered by John Ott of the Environmental Health and Light Research Institute. Mr. Ott went on to study the nature of natural and artificial sources of light and their effects upon the growth of plants, animals and, eventually, his own health.

In his book, titled Health and Light, Mr. Ott describes his work with domesticated flowers and crops, demonstrating the beneficial effects of natural sunlight on plant growth and resistance to blight. Over the years, his work naturally extended from flora to fauna. He was called upon by the caretakers of zoo animals when it was found that many of the animals imported from the tropics had become infertile and susceptible to illness. Mr. Ott discovered, time and again, that the frequency of light illuminating the animals’ cages needed to be adjusted to match the frequency of light found in their native habitats. Once adjusted, fertility returned and health improved.

Mr. Ott eventually centered his activities in Florida. One day, while working out of the Institute, he accidentally broke his eyeglasses. Although he was without a spare set, he sent his glasses off for repair. In addition to being handicapped without the aid of his spectacles, Mr. Ott’s research had become hampered over the years by a painful and crippling form of arthritis, his movements growing dependent upon a cane.

Even though his vision was now impaired and his movements restricted, it didn’t keep him out from under the bright Florida sun, where he would walk the beaches of Sarasota and relax in the warmth and brilliance of tropical days. As the weeks passed, and he waited for the return of his eyeglasses, Mr. Ott noticed his symptoms of arthritis beginning to diminish. The pain subsided from his joints, he relinquished reliance upon his cane, and he gained back a range of mobility he had not enjoyed in years. He was at a loss to explain why his recovery was taking place, and it was not until his eyeglasses were returned from the shop that he was able to synthesize his past research with his present condition.

Within a few days after restoring his sight through glass, his symptoms began to return. Putting two and two together, Mr. Ott removed his glasses and, as he suspected, the symptoms of arthritis gradually lessened. His study on the nature of light now shifted to its effects upon his own health. From the well-known effects of light upon the lower species of animals, Mr. Ott speculated that sunlight played a critical role in the growth and development of people as well, in ways little understood at the time. From his work on the health of domesticated animals, he recalled what was common knowledge among poultry breeders: sunlight received through the eyes of the chicken stimulated the pituitary gland, which increased egg production. It seemed that, in one sense, glands metabolized light in the same way the body metabolizes food. Light energy was being converted directly into biochemical energy.

The Endocrine System

Endocrine glands secrete hormones directly into the bloodstream to regulate body functions in fundamental ways. The endocrine system affects a person's growth and development, including reproductive organs, energy level, metabolic rate and the ability to adapt to stress. The glands of the endocrine system include the pituitary, thyroid, adrenals and pineal, as well as the pancreas. Among them, the pituitary – located at the base of the brain – appears to govern the entire glandular system. The pineal gland is found in humans and vertebrate animals. Relatively little is known about the pineal, which means that it remains overlooked and under-appreciated. It too is located at the base of the brain in humans, although it is raised as a modified “third eye” among the reptiles and fish, and is referred to as the “pineal eye.”

One other function of the glands is to lubricate the joints of the body in both humans and the lower species. This was Mr. Ott’s initial clue to a link between the endocrine system and his symptoms of arthritis. He speculated that there is an intimate connection between sunlight and the endocrine system in humans. We have evolved for over 100,000 generations under conditions of natural light. Any deviation from this natural order invites a measure of stress.

Early on in his career, Mr. Ott had learned that the full spectrum of natural light does not penetrate glass; even clear glass. He conducted a revealing study, from a macrobiotic point of view, with a species of plant called Elodea Grass. He studied the details of its cell structure under the watchful eye of a microscope. Under conditions of natural light, he observed streams of chloroplasts spiraling within the parameters of each cell. However, when the natural light was filtered through clear glass, the spiralic movement slowed to a stop and the chloroplasts drifted aimlessly or stopped altogether, hugging the borders of the cells.

Clear glass, and plastics, block a portion of the ultraviolet end of the spectrum of natural light and distorts the wavelengths that are allowed through. “Clear” glass and plastics include the windows commonly found in the workplace and home and – of critical importance – in eyeglasses and contact lenses. To Mr. Ott, this provided strong evidence that his eyeglasses effectively cut off the stream of beneficial light from bathing and nourishing the pituitary gland that, in turn, diminished the gland’s ability to regulate
the endocrine system.

The Nature of Light from a Macrobiotic Point of View

The greatest complementary/antagonist relationship is that between a person and his/her environment. The most intimate connection people have with the environment occurs through the food they consume. Food is transmuted into the person consuming it.

According to macrobiotic understanding, we consume many forms of nourishment. Beginning with the most dense, yang sustenance, we consume “solid” food through
the mouth. As we move upward along the face toward the crown of the head, we are nourished by ever-higher frequencies of energy.

Above the mouth, we breathe in air and aromas (which have the capacity to travel over tens of miles). Above the nose, out ears absorb the energy of sound (which may travel hundreds of miles through the air). Farther up, our eyes take in the energy of light, which can originate many millions and billions of miles away. (A common misconception heard is that our range of vision extends outwards for billions of miles, but, in truth, the light has traveled those billions of miles to be seen by us). As we move upward toward the crown of the head, we take in ever-higher frequencies of food, including energy bathing us from the cosmos, inspiration, intuition.

Clear glass and plastics – including eyeglasses and contacts – prevent ultraviolet light from entering in through the eye, and distorts the quality of light that is able to penetrate it (keeping in mind that we have evolved for millions of years under conditions of unimpeded natural light).

Macrobiotic principles recognize the importance of the endocrine system. Coupled with the view that food affects the glandular system, as it does other tissues of the body, we must take into account what might be its fundamental source of nourishment – sunlight. People wearing eyeglasses or contact lenses should remove them for a portion of each day in order to expose their eyes to natural light. Perhaps even ambient light is sufficient. People confined to eyeglasses and contact lenses spend days, months, years, even decades without ever directly seeing sunlight, or, more accurately, without ever being seen by the sun.