The sun used to be worshiped. Now, with the prospect of skin cancer, it is feared. People who go out stay slathered in sun block. Many avoid the glare of the great outdoors entirely. But there is a dark side to staying in the dark. It’s Vitamin D deficiency.
In the normal scheme of things, half of our vitamin D is derived from exposure to the sun. A new study on vitamin D by Adit A. Ginde, M.D., M.P.H., of the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine, found that an increasing percentage of the American population is deficient in this vitamin. There are a host of health issues associated with low levels of vitamin D including osteoporosis, heart disease and cancer. Vitamin D deficiency in chronic low back pain patients is well documented. In 2003, a research study in the journal Spine reported that 341 out of 360 subjects were relieved of their low back pain after three months of vitamin D supplementation. Clinical research has also shown that vitamin D supplementation is important for many other conditions including osteoarthritis, high blood pressure, depression, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and type 2 diabetes. So while staying out of the sun may lower your risk of skin cancer, you may be undermining your overall health in the process.
Actions Steps For Getting Enough Vitamin D
Catching some rays without sunblock in moderation [like almost everything else in life] is fine. Don’t rely on dairy products that are fortified with vitamin D to give you enough of this nutrient. Take a vitamin D supplement daily. The great news is that vitamin D supplements are inexpensive as well as being one of the cornerstones to optimum health.
