BLUSH Winter 2019

BLUSH | HEALTH & FITNESS
VITAL
MINUTES
IN THE SUN
A
larmingly,
Over the last few decades
what has
not been
the emphasis on protecting
highlighted ourselves from the harmful rays
enough is how
of the sun has increased with
limiting our
exposure to
information readily available on
the sun can actually have negative effects how direct contact with UV light
on our health. Vitamin-D is integral to our
can cause us harm. Many of us
development, growth and psychological
wellbeing, and although we can gain this now avoid UV rays, by wearing
through supplements, the cheapest and high factor protective lotions
most efficient way of getting a daily dose
or by staying out of the sun
of ‘D’ into our system is exposure to natural
sunlight. Supplements are expensive, and altogether... What advice are
they don’t always provide the amount of we supposed to follow?
the vitamin that we need, especially
if somebody has a high deficiency
level. You would think that the
sunnier countries would have
lower rates of vitamin-D deficiency,
however this is not necessarily the
case, as in some hotter climates
the culture or religion may dictate
that skin is covered – and because
humans absorb vitamin-D through
the skin, people who are covering up
all the time are not getting enough
of it.
We all know the uplifting feeling
we get on a sunny day, which
can help to improve our mood.
Take this one step further, and the
other psychological benefit is that
vitamin-D actually helps to combat
depression, as well as ease general
aches and pains. Also, in recent years
Seasonal Effective Disorder (SAD)
has been highlighted as a condition
suffered by people mostly during the
winter. SAD is also caused by a lack of exposure to sunlight due to a
melatonin imbalance. The most common treatment for this is spending
time in front of a light box for between thirty to sixty minutes daily.
Although it is important to spend time in natural sunlight, we do have Article by Louise Howard | Illustration by Calin Muir
limiting our
exposure to the sun
can actually have
negative effects on
our health
to remember to do this sensibly, whilst
avoiding the damaging effects of the sun.
Two to fifteen minutes in the sunlight
at non-peak times is enough to keep
that immune system up with the help of
vitamin-D.
Remember that if you are fair skinned
you need far less time in the sun to absorb
vitamin-D. Our colouring is our
natural protection – so the darker we
are, the more protection our skin has
against UV rays. We should all avoid
the hottest parts of the day, with
early morning and late afternoon
being the safest time to expose
ourselves to sunlight. Also, by eating
‘super foods’ such as pomegranates,
blueberries and acai we can boost
our body’s capability to protect it
from harmful UV rays. Worshipping
the sun and spending hours trying
to get a ‘Hawaiian Tropic’ tan is not
good for us, but getting outside
definitely is, and benefits us all round,
both psychologically and physically.
To read more about this
important health subject, including
the scientific research to support that
vitamin-D boosts the immune system
and therefore the recovery process
for cancer patients, check out the
book Vitamin D Is this the miracle
vitamin? By Ian Wishart Available here at www.amazon.co.uk/
Vitamin-D-This-Miracle/dp/0987657313
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