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Dr Russ Blog - Sunshine for Your Vitamin D - Maybe Not So Easy
Sunshine for Your Vitamin D - Maybe Not So Easy
Created on 8/20/2010
I received a question about sunshine and vitamin D from A who asks if 5-30 minutes in the sun each day is safe, and if it's enough to generate healthy levels of vitamin D.
For years we've all been hearing about how important vitamin D is to our health, and experts have offered many recommendations to ensure healthy levels of vitamin D, including 15-30 minutes of unprotected sun exposure each day.
Sounds good, sounds easy.
There's a rub, however. Maybe more than one.
General recommendations for daily sun exposure of unprotected skin (no sun block of sun protective clothing) for 15-30 minutes a day do not take into account a whole host of factors, including season and geography (in part determining the strength of the sun's rays), shade from trees and buildings, cloud cover, time of day (as relates to the angle of the sun), amount of skin exposed, skin type and color, and more. Plus, we're not sure how much unprotected sun exposure can lead to dangerous skin changes - what if even 15-30 minutes isn't healthy for us?
Some now believe that in order to get adequate vitamin D in your system from the sun, taking all known factors into account, you might need to spend 1-2 hours a day exposing unprotected skin to the sun's ultraviolet (UV) rays. This not even discussing the issue of people who live in high Northern geographic locations where the sun's rays are generally weaker.
Here comes the other rub - more time for the sun's UV rays to come in contact with your unprotected skin likely means increasing the risk for skin cancer. NAGT (Not A Good Thing).
For me the bottom line is clear - there are many reasons to spend time outdoors, including the fact that doing so usually makes us happy. But spending time outdoors without sunblock or sun protective clothing, even for relatively short periods, is simply not smart. Taking a daily vitamin D supplement seems the best option for most people.
To make sure you consistently have enough vitamin D in your system ask your doctor how much vitamin D you should take each day to be healthy.
Your doctor may order a blood test to get an idea of your baseline vitamin D status before you begin taking a supplement, the results of which can help guide what dose to take. Otherwise a good general recommendation is to take vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) in a dose of 2,000 IU (International Units) each day.
The sun feels great on our skin and can help us generate needed vitamin D, but the sun's UV rays also can harm the skin. Still, we need "the sunshine vitamin" to be healthy.
Best to cover up, apply sun block every day, and regularly take a good vitamin D supplement.
Thanks for your question, A. Be well.
Dr. Russ
** Information on this web site is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your physician or other healthcare professional. You should not use the information on this web site for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing any medication or other treatment. **
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