Health Benefits of Vitamin D from the Sun

We all love the outdoors and we have to be cautious about getting too much sun. I'm sure you are aware of the importance of using sunscreen. But it seems there are two sides to the story. I recently read an article in Reader’s Digest concerning the importance of vitamin D and all it’s health benefits. We can get Vitamin D from several sources, including foods such as cooked salmon, canned tuna, cooked mackerel, milk that has been fortified, and of course cod liver oil. Yuck! Of course there is always vitamin D supplements. But for people that love the outdoors, the sun is a fantastic way to get some of that much needed D. Dermatologist will certainly recommend that you get your D mainly from supplements, however vitamin D researchers think that we are using too much sunscreen and not getting enough of it from the sun. 

You can’t overdose on D from the sun. Once the skin has absorbed enough vitamin D, the conversion process shuts down. And you may be able to store up a supply of vitamin D in the spring, summer and fall to get you through the winter, but not if you always use sunscreen.

Studies have shown that the rates of colon cancer were about twice as high in the sun starved northeastern United States compared to the sunny South. Researchers have identified at least 18 types of cancer that are more prevalent among people who don’t get enough vitamin D, including such common ones as breast, lung, prostate, and ovarian. They speculate that this may be the reason that African Americans have higher rates and more aggressive cases of prostate and breast cancer. Black skin doesn’t efficiently absorb the ultraviolet B (UVB) rays that trigger Vitamin D production.

Even after cancer strikes, the vitamin D our body makes in the summer can help fight disease. Studies showed that survival rates of cancer patients were better if diagnosed in the summer than in the winter, and mortality rates were 40 percent higher among lung cancer patients operated on in the winter than in the summer when the vitamin D levels were higher. Patients given vitamin D along with chemotherapy had fewer and less serious side effects than those who received a placebo with the chemo. In lab research, when prostate cancer cells were exposed to activated vitamin D, the cells stopped reproducing wildly and resumed normal, orderly growth. The same thing happened when colon and breast cancer cells were used.

Other diseases affected by vitamin D include heart disease, high blood pressure, Multiple sclerosis, Diabetes and even Rheumatoid arthritis.

Studies show that most people are not getting enough vitamin D. Researchers recommend 1000 IU (international units), which is higher than the current government’s recommend 200 to 400 IU. This may change in the near future.

So, be sure to get a good supply of vitamin D this summer and fall, from the sun as well as supplements. A researcher recommends you check out how long it takes for your skin to become red or react to the sun and then spend one quarter of that time in the sun without sunscreen, (except for your face). An estimate would be about 10 to 15 minutes in the midday sun exposing at least 50 percent of your body. When that time is up then put on the sunscreen as recommended.