The original conception of homeostasis was grounded in two ideas. First, there is a single optimal level, number, amount for any given measure in the body. But that can’t be true—after all, the ideal blood pressure when you’re sleeping is likely to be different than when you’re ski jumping. What’s ideal under basal conditions is different than during stress, something central to allostatic thinking. (The field uses this Zen-ish sound bite about how allostasis is about “constancy through change.” I’m not completely sure I understand what that means, but it always elicits meaningful and
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