Are you ready for summer? After the winter we've had, it seems only fitting that we're having almost summer-like temperatures in late March and early April, but most of us aren't arguing. Since it has been so nice, I've seen all kinds of summer activities starting to happen. Whether it's getting the yard and garden prepped, swinging the clubs, or just getting out for a walk, we're itching to enjoy the nice weather. Even though spring just started, as far as your skin is concerned, summer is here, so you'd better be acting accordingly.
In my mind, summer starts and ends on the days when we can get vitamin D produced by our skin from direct sunlight. While it won't last long yet, as of today, April 3, in St. Cloud, MN, we officially can start producing vitamin D, after a seven month hiatus. As I detailed in Lengthen Your Life #3 and Healthy Cavemen Didn't Live in Caves, vitamin D is one of the most essential components of a healthy lifestyle. Even though it's been a mild winter, until today, the sun wasn't high enough in the sky for our bodies to produce vitamin D naturally, so we've had to supplement for the last seven months.
The general consensus for years was that as long as you got some sun, you would get vitamin D produced. Current research tells us that is naive and short sighted. Sunlight has many different wavelengths, and only a small percentage of that will stimulate our skin to make vitamin D. We've known for quite some time that UVA and UVB have differing effects on the body. We now know that it is UVB that stimulates the body to make vitamin D. In medicine, UVA and UVB are lumped together as dangerous, but the reality is quite different.
UVB, while getting a bad rap from modern dermatologists, is very beneficial to our bodies. It does not significantly stimulate melanocytes, which are the cells that create the darker pigment we produce as we tan after sun exposure. What it does, is stimulate the conversion of vitamin D. This reaction seems to be a simple energy transfer, and not the result of certain cellular action. We used to think it happened inside of cells, but we know see it happening almost on top of the skin, or barely inside the first layer of skin.
Unfortunately, UVB rays are easily reflected by the atmosphere, and unless the sun is at least 50 degrees above the horizon, they don't get to us. That's why today, in my mind, is the start of summer. If you care to take a few minutes over the lunch hour (12:00-12:30), you can get your first contact with UVB again. The amount will increase as we progress through the year until about July 4, when we reach a peak of 5 hours and 20 minutes (9:40-3:00). That's just 20 minutes less than if you were in Honolulu, Hawaii on the same day. After that, it will decrease again until September 5, when we will say goodbye to UVB for the winter, and have to wait until April of next year before we meet again. Honolulu, on the other hand still gets 5 hours on that same day, and only loses UVB from mid-November until late January.
But wait, if UVB is only out at the peak of the day, isn't that dangerous to expose your skin at that time? Modern dermatologists want us to believe exactly that. They tell us to stay out of the sun when it is at its peak (10-2), which eliminates any possibility of natural vitamin D production. They still believe that all UV rays are dangerous, and haven't yet figured out that vitamin D is one of the best things we can get to prevent skin cancer. What we need to avoid is sunburn, not sun exposure.
Unfortunately, many of us, once we've been out in the healthy midday sun, want to go in and take a shower to wash all that sweat and oil from our skin. While that may seem like a good idea in today's hygienic world, in reality, we've just washed away all of the vitamin D. As I said, we know believe vitamin D is produced on the surface of the skin, and since it is fat soluble, it will be washed away if you shower and use soap over those areas exposed to the sun. It seems to take about 48 hours for the skin to absorb the vitamin D made and get it into the bloodstream. Does that mean you shouldn't shower all summer? No. In fact, showering is just fine, but you don't have to soap everywhere all the time. As I discussed in Healthy Skin Isn't Tough and Lengthen Your Life #1, we overuse soaps and end up with dry skin. In this case, we also continue a vitamin D deficient lifestyle. Generally, if you wash with soap those areas that aren't exposed to the sun, you'll minimize odor, have moister skin, and still get your vitamin D
UVA rays cause the majority of the negative effects to our skin. They cause wrinkling, aging, can contribute to both squamous and basal cell carcinomas, and also destroys vitamin D. UVA rays are around all year long, go through glass, and are nature's balance to UVB so we don't overproduce vitamin D. Unfortunately, we end up being exposed to way more UVA than UVB, and the balance is all on the negative side. These are the only rays you'll be getting if you follow the advice of current dermatologists.
Being out in the sun is healthy, but you should know all the facts, and not just the misconceptions promoted by modern medicine and mainstream media. Get your sun, but start slowly in the spring, and try to get it at the right times. Don't be afraid of UVB, but be cautious with UVA. Next week, I'll spend some time talking about sunscreens and sunblock so we can be safe all summer long.
Look for future blogs that will give more information and insights into improving your health with natural health care. You can also visit my website, like me on Facebook, follow me on Twitter, or listen to my radio show.
