Long-Term Study of Heart Rate Variability Responses to Changes in the Solar and Geomagnetic Environment

Area of Science:

• Environmental science
• Human physiology
• Geophysics

Background:

• The autonomic nervous system (ANS) regulates involuntary bodily functions.
• Solar and geomagnetic activity are known environmental factors that can influence biological systems.
• Understanding the temporal relationship between these factors and ANS responses is crucial for human health.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationships between solar and magnetic factors and the autonomic nervous system (ANS) responses.
• To examine the time course and lags of ANS responses to changes in solar and geomagnetic activity.
• To determine how different solar and geomagnetic variables affect physiological markers.

Main Methods:

• Long-term monitoring of heart rate variability (HRV) over a five-month period in 16 participants.
• Recording HRV for 72 consecutive hours each week to capture ANS responses during normal environmental conditions.
• Utilizing multivariate linear regression analysis with Bonferroni corrections to correlate HRV measures with solar and geomagnetic variables after removing circadian influences.

Main Results:

• Daily ANS activity was confirmed to respond to changes in geomagnetic and solar activity during undisturbed periods.
• Responses were initiated at varying times after environmental changes and persisted for different durations.
• Increased solar wind intensity correlated with increased heart rate, suggesting a biological stress response.
• Increased cosmic rays, solar radio flux, and Schumann resonance power were associated with increased HRV and parasympathetic activity.

Conclusions:

• The study supports the hypothesis that energetic environmental phenomena influence psychophysical processes.
• Individual responses to these phenomena vary based on sensitivity, health status, and self-regulation capacity.
• These findings highlight the intricate connection between Earth's energetic environment and human physiological regulation.