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Go ahead, get some sun; it'll do a body good
Date published: 2/24/2008
BOSTON-- Life on our planet requires sunlight to survive. And most organisms work hard to get it. Jungle reptiles often compete with each other to find the highest, warmest surfaces for sunbathing. Rainforest plants race to fill rare, sunny openings in the thick canopy left by fallen trees. And some flowers even bend their stems to follow the sun's movement across the sky.
Humans also need sensible sun exposure. But unlike the rest of life on Earth, we actively work to avoid the sun.
In recent years, several dubious groups have launched smear campaigns against the sun, blurring the line between overexposure--a very real threat to our health--and any exposure at all. The sunscreen industry constantly warns the public to "cover up" before venturing outside. Store shelves are flooded with products promising increasingly higher sun-protecting factors (SPF). And the latest children's swim trunks cover more skin than a nun's habit.
This frantic obscuration has hurt us in an unexpected area: nutrition. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that more than 180 million Americans--60 percent of the population--are not getting enough vitamin D.
Though certain foods contain trace amounts, it's virtually impossible to get enough vitamin D through diet alone. The National Institutes of Health lists sunlight as "the most important source of vitamin D." Our bodies produce the aptly named "sunshine vitamin" when ultraviolet rays reach our skin. To produce the amount that most experts now agree is the minimum daily requirement (about 1,000 to 2,000 international units), one would need to expose 25 percent of one's body for around 10 minutes at least two to three times a week during spring, summer, and early fall.
We don't even come close.
Geography, weather, pollution, and sunscreen limit the amount of UV available. Even factors as simple as the season play a role. For instance, during this time of year, sunlight is a scarce commodity, especially for Americans in the northern states.
Date published: 2/24/2008
Most recent reader comments:
WOW, Now I Know! EVERYTHING IS DEADLY!
(posted by
VALOVER
, Feb. 24, 2008 4:59 am)
My neurologist has always told me that everyone wants to find the cause and the cure for MS and now I know it's from the lack of vitamin D. Dr, Holick is sure to scare many newly diagnosed people telling them it is a deadly illness. I wonder what my mother was thinking when we were made to play outside and what benefit I was getting from the sun when my job had me outside 1/4 of the time, I still got MS 18 years ago and to think I am still breathing, CONGRATS DOC, you have terrified many people today.
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