Sunlight

Sunlight is vital to life - Should we avoid it?

The Skin Cancer Scare
Starting in the 1990's dermatologists, the medical profession in general, and big pharma in particular, began a campaign to warn everyone about the dangers of skin cancer. The public mood went from worshipping the sun, to fearing its possible lethal effects. Melanoma and basal cell skin cancer became the new "Shark Week."

Sunlight: Friend or Foe?
Frightened by the mass media and the medical profession, the general public began covering themselves and their children in sunscreen and protective clothing. Sales of sun-screen in its various forms from lip balm, to makeup, to sun-tan lotion, sky-rocketed to a multi-billion dollar industry. We now know that sunscreen, still recommended by most dermatologists, blocks precisely the UVB rays that produce vitamin D in our skin. In addition, skin cells can only get vitamin D from sunlight to maintain good health, not from supplements in our blood. One should, of course, avoid excessive sun exposure which can lead to burning.

Is Vitamin D Deficiency Pandemic?
It is estimated that as much as 90% of the world's population may be vitamin D deficient. This is particularly severe for those who live in northern latitudes and get reduced or no UVB rays from the sun during the winter months. It is even more critical for people with darker skin pigmentation since their bodies require exposure to higher levels of UVB rays to produce vitamin D. Millions of years of biological evolution still governs, even if the medical establishment and governments choose to ignore it.

COVID and Vitamin D

Vitamin D, essential for immune health
Vitamin D is not just a vitamin, but rather a potent neuro-regulatory steroidal hormone. New research has shed light on the relationship of vitamin D to human health. In its various forms, it is necessary for the proper interaction between every cell in our body, and critical for the endocrine signaling system needed by immune cells to function properly. When our vitamin D blood serum level is too low (below 40ng/ml), we become vulnerable to a host of chronic illnesses, including COVID19, as a result of a weakened immune system.

Civilization and the Sun
On the road to civilization, humans increasingly separated themselves from nature. For one, we put on lots of clothes in order to survive in cold northern climates. We also congregated in cities and worked more indoors. With today's life styles, we are outdoors only about 7.5% of the day, not enough for adequate exposure to sunlight.

D Minder App: How Much Sun Do I Need?

Fortunately, we can compensate for the lack of UVB rays with vitamin D supplements. But it is still important to have sufficient exposure to the full spectrum of natural sunlight because of other benefits that have yet to be discovered. Research indicates, for example, that the near infra-red part of the sunlight spectrum is also essential for a robust immune system. We evolved in sunlight and our natural surroundings and need both for good health. (See link to "Light as Medicine")

vitamin d

Best Time of Day to Get Vitamin D
If you expose your skin to the sun during the summer months between the hours of 11:00AM and 1:00PM when UVB rays best penetrate the atmosphere, you will produce the most vitamin D in your skin. However, with age our ability to produce vitamin D from sunlight diminishes and supplementation becomes essential.

Cancer and Vitamin D

Get Tested for Vitamin D Blood Levels
Researchers are recommending that we be tested for vitamin D blood serum levels. The proper test is called "25 hydroxy D," or 25(OH)D. Getting tested for vitamin D blood serum levels should be part of a routine annual physical exam, and we should know our vitamin D blood plasma levels, just like we know our weight. Do you know your 25(OH)D level? Healthy ranges are anywhere from 60-80 ng/ml depending on the individual. Below 40ng/ml is considered deficient.

Your body may utilize some 4,000 IU's per day depending on a number of factors such as age, stress, illness, and diet. Each person's needs can be different. So the National Academy of Medicine's recommended minimum daily allowance of 400 to 600 IU's is significantly below what the human body needs to maintain an optimal level of health according to research. (See Dr. Seheult video)

Heart, Bones, Vit. K2, Magnesium & Vit. D

Also, the more vitamin D we produce or ingest, the more we need critical co-factors, vitamin K2 and magnesium, both essential for calcium metabolism and heart and bone health. (See presentation above by Dr. Kate Rheaume-Bleue). Vitamin and mineral supplements should generally not be taken in isolation as biological systems are complex and interactive.

Links

Resources on vitamin D,
general nutrition and health:
www.grassrootshealth.net

Light as Medicine: Dr. Roger Seheilt
https://youtu.be/5YV_iKnzDRg

Dr. Michael F. Holick, Ph.D., M.D.
Boston University Medical Center:
www.drholick.com

Lecture by Dr. Michael Holick, Ph.D., M.D.:
D-Lightful Vitamin D for Good Health.
74 minutes.

Other medical research videos:
University of California San Diego - TV
Medcram.com - TV

Counterintuitive "Science"
Part of the reason for the dearth of education on vitamin D from "official" sources despite significant available research, is the general inertia of medical bureaucracies together with the influence on governmental policy of powerful special interests. Today, some of medical wisdom seems counterintuitive. "Avoid the sun," yet every living organism on the planet evolved in constant exposure to sunlight. Or "stay inside to stay safe" when fresh air is essential for good health and sunlight is the best disinfectant. Has your doctor asked you recently about what you eat, how much sunlight or exercise you get, or what vitamins you take? If not, say: "Hey Doc, I think I may be vitamin D deficient. Can we do a blood test to find out?"

Manufactured or Naturally Grown Food?
Knowing what we now know about the central importance of sunlight and vitamin D, we must be careful not to go against millions of years
of biological evolution to "improve" or artificially increase the output of the food we eat . When we ply plants with pesticides and chemical fertilizers, or poultry and cattle with antibiotics and hormones, cram them into tight quarters with little sunlight, and deprive them of their natural food sources and habitats, we affect the very safety and nutritional value of the foods we eat. The new mantra of manufacturing "artificial" foods in an attempt to improve on nature or to "save the planet" is sure to introduce additional unintended health and environmental consequences. (See "Kiss the Ground")

Medicine and Health
While modern science has brought about great advancements in medical knowledge, the economic model of managing the symptoms of illnesses so we can live with them, rather than addressing the underlying causes by promoting nutritional health and prevention, has resulted in long-term consequences for society. Big pharma depends on millions of people buying into synthetic drugs as the solution to most chronic illnesses. Yet vitamin D is proving to be an effective and relatively inexpensive means of strengthening our innate immune system to ward off disease, without the unwanted side-effects of many medications.

The Importance of unbiased research
Free enquiry is critical to the advancement of science. But when established scientific "truth" has been challenged in the past, the reaction has been predictable. From the time of Copernicus and Galileo to the present, there has been a similar operating procedure by those having either an ideological stake in the game, or serious money on the line. First, ridicule the research. Next, silence the critic. This was the initial reaction to reknown vitamin D researcher, Dr. Michael F. Holick, when he questioned established medical wisdom about the role of sunlight in human and animal health. Hopefully, we have now turned the corner on a recognition of the central role Vitamin D plays in human health. (See "Links")

The Right to Control Our One & Only Body
It is crucial that we have individual choice when it comes to our own bodies, the food we eat, and the medications we take. We may be in as much danger from the influence that big pharma and food industry lobbies have on governmental policy as we are from the ailments we are trying to conquer.

Note:
Information contained herein is inteneded for educational purposes only and is based on reports or other sources believed to be reliable. However, such information has not been verified by us, nor do we make any representation as to its accuracy or completeness. Always consult a licensed medical professional before medicating.