10/11/2026
This is why we don’t use barn lights in the dark, why we use only incandescent if we DO have to, and why we are SO careful with fly masks and don’t buy UV blocking ones.
So much left to learn….
Could your horse’s fly mask be interfering with their gut function?
(Edited 11/11/24 to include studies to support my inquiry, and added information on the importance of sunlight)
This is a question I have been wondering about for a while now. Let me explain why.
The science of circadian rhythm is a newly emerging field. Although the cycle of the sun has been a large part of society’s well-being dating back to Egyptians most likely earlier. After all the sphinx does face towards the rising sun. And the culture at Sarmizegetusa in Romania has an entire village set up to reflect different times of day, winter and summer solstice, and even has a large sun dial in the center of their worship.
Circadian clocks in our brain and all around our body controls most (if not all) of our biological processes, which is governed by natural sunlight… or disrupted by artificial light or lack of natural sunlight. Research now proves that our light environment is as fundamental to our health as air, water, and food. Some would argue it is even more important than what we eat. [PMID: 32668607]
Light is one of the most powerful influencers on all mammalian physiology. Every cell in our body that forms every tissue, organ, skin, everything, relies on a circadian rhythm. And this comes from deep in our brain through our naked eyes.
All mammals have whats called a superchiasmotic nuclei (SCN) that goes from our eyes to our hypothalamus, and is considered our internal time clock. Taking in the light in our environment and interpreting it as to what time of day or night it is in order to synchronize millions of physiological tasks that have to happen inside every single cell at every moment.
Recognizing what blend of light (or darkness) that is happening in present time is crucial to the functioning of all the things that our body needs to accomplish at a cellular level. The back of our eyes captures all of these light frequencies.
When we are attuned to nature, and to natural light, every physiological process is not only synchronized in a circadian rhythm, but this also is how our mitochondria creates a coherent domain water that internally hydrates every surface of our body. This water gives our cells the negative charge needed for optimization. It acts not only as a protective barrier around every hydrophilic surface, but also is how every process in our body communicates with each other. Our internal exclusion zone water transmits signals, emits signals, gathers information around our body, and creates a protective coating so the lining of for example, our endothelial walls, are protected. The water we create is more important than the water we drink. And it is the light from the sun that is crucial for the creation of internal water from our mitochondria.
When we are attuned to artificial light, or even light coming through windows (all windows block out red and IR light), or light coming through sunglasses - the master clock in the brain is being told it is a different time of day and this disrupts the timing of all of our biological processes. This creates a circadian mismatch, or chaos within our body. This also creates cellular dehydration which then gives our cells a positive charge. This positive charge basically means we are loosing our health as we loose this protective coating of coherent domain water, and it looses it’s structure and is no longer able to communicate. [PMID: 36030088]
This got me wondering about fly masks as so many are advertised as “UV” blockers. And what this is doing to a horse’s circadian rhythm. And how their physiological processes effected when the sun entering their SCN is filtered through a mask that is blocking UV light coming from the sun.
The sun contains every color of the rainbow. Some we see, and some light frequencies we don’t see. When the sun rises it is super rich in red and infrared light, and as it continues to rise it starts to bring other colors in. At solar noon every color of the rainbow is present. Then as it starts to go towards the opposite horizon it gets more violet and green then red and IR again as it sets.
Natures light is always changing throughout the day. And our bodies, when attuned to this light are responding in unison transforming energies from the sun to our mitochondria. Creating liquid crystalline water that is the primordial quantum molecular machine resulting in 100% efficiency of cellular optimization. Synchronizing all processes in present time.
Not only does artificial light stay the exact same throughout the day, but filtering light through windows or sunglasses also causes a confusion our biology and the timing of when different processes need to happen.
So for example, when our eyes see the sunrise, this mix of red and IR light turns on our hypothalamus through the SCN which is responsible for communicating with our hormone pathways telling them to wake up and synchronize.
When our eyes and skin (skin has non visual photo receptors that support the light coming through the eye) see the rise of UVA, which is when the sun is about 10 degrees above the horizon, this stimulates a few very important processes.
The first pathway to start when our naked eyes see UVA rise from the sun, is serotonin. Serotonin actually comes from tryptophan. Tryptophan is an aromatic amino acid, means it is designed to interact with light and is essentially considered a time crystal. As soon as tryptophan captures UVA light in the back of our eyes, that catalyses tryptophan to become serotonin.
There is a large store of serotonin there found in mammal’s guts. The serotonin stores in the small bowel can be harvested to make pineal melatonin from the gut stores of serotonin. The stimulus of this complex program is UV and IR light during the day via the RPE of the eye, with no blue at night. When these factors are present we will get no peristalsis in the gut. This also shut down fat burning. Fat burning by the TCA cycle requires us to see the sunrise. Dr. Jack Kruse
Neuropsin is also stimulated by UVA rise which is involved in anchoring our circadian rhythm.
But then, the dark environment is just as important to this process. When our eyes capture the dark environment, this tells serotonin to convert into melatonin. Melatonin sensitizes the photoreceptors within the retina [PMID: 1582795].
So essentially being outside at UVA rise is what helps us get a restorative sleep. This is true for all mammals.
[PMID: 1582795]
So what do you think happens if the first light in the morning that your eyes see is an artificial light from a lamp, or a phone screen? This tells our brain through our SCN that it is later in the day. This process of tryptophan becoming serotonin is compromised, and you might consider yourself “not a morning person” taking a long time to wake up. Or, you might be tired all day, always exhausted. And you go to bed exhausted yet you might not sleep well since you are now lacking melatonin production.
What about horses who get UVA blocked? Or if the first light they see is a barn light, then goes to their turn out pasture with a fly mask on blocking all UV light? Think about how important serotonin is to the gut. And the gut is intimately connected to brain health, skin health, metabolic health, etc. From what I see, all of these issues seem to be chronic conditions among our equine family. A disruption in circadian rhythms has been directly linked to poor gut microbiota. [PMID: 32668369].
There are also other amino acids that trap UVA rise to become things like dopamine, norepinephrine, thyroid hormone, and most importantly the production of pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC). Which is a pro hormone that becomes a whole host of downstream molecules that do things like reduce anxiety, improve memory, support healthy immune, reduce compulsive behaviors, enhance dopamine, responsible for ACTH to lower inflammation, or beta endorphins to lower pain.
Anyone with a horse knows of ACTH as this is what is tested for cushings disease. Cushings is another chronic disease among our beloved horses. So is insulin resistance, which has direct links to lack of sunlight. Neurodegeneration has been associated with GI issues via the gut brain axis. Which can be a result when any of the above mentioned pathways are weakened.
UVA rise hitting our naked eyes and bare skin is what stimulates ALL of these neurotransmitters and neuropathways to begin.
When we block UVA, these processes suffer.
Then we have UVB rise, which comes after UVA. You can get the circadian app to see this timing for your location. UVB is crucial not only for for vitamin D synthesis, but also UVB directly modulates microbiome to increase microbial diversity. This happens more when UVB hits the skin, but when the eyes and skin are not in the same circadian timing these pathways can become compromised.
Vitamin D is responsible for anti-inflammatory responses, healthy immune function, among so many other things.
Sunglasses blocks or changes nature’s light coming through the eyes. Sunglasses tell our brain that it is twilight, so important functions start to slow down. We have a circadian mismatch between our eyes and the photo receptors on our skin. Important process like digestion, that slows down when the sun goes down, might always be slow. An indoor life, or an outdoor life in sunglasses, is like living in perpetual twilight. Does the same hold true for a horse who always wears a fly mask? If our digestion slows when the sun goes down, and sunglasses cause our body to think it is later in the day, can fly masks do the same thing?
All mammals have this physiology and in the last 15-20 years the sun has become demonized yet we still need it for our survival. As we move further away from nature, our furry 4-leggeds com along with us. We have forgotten how healing the sun is for our survival. Studies that demonize UV from the sun have been done in isolation, without balancing the red and IR and all of the other colors of the rainbow that harmonizes the light spectrums. And now we are covering up our horses with fly masks, fly sheets, blankets, even sprays. And they are also getting sicker and sicker.
Inflammatory problems in so many horses I see mostly with skin and gut. Insulin, cushings. Osteoarthritis, ulcers, microbiome issues, ligament tears, anxiety issues. Could these be a result of blocking their access to nature?This is a picture of my horse with a fly mask that he wore for the most part of his last 3 years. He died from an unexpected gut problem.
