sunscreen, sunlight, and vitamin D

[ugeauxgirl]

This article presents the possibility that maybe we need sunlight for good health- that D supplements aren't the same, and that maybe the advice to never leave the house without a thick coat of sunscreen was a little misguided.

I'll admit this all makes sense, but I don't have the ability to read these sorts of studies critically. Anyone have thoughts on this?

https://www.outsideonline.com/2380751/sunscreen-sun-exposure-skin-cancer-science

 

[Dtail]

In FLA, no issues here even with sunscreen. lol

 

[Teacher Terry]

I don’t use sunscreen unless I will be outside for hours.

 

[msieweke]

I couldn't get to the full study, but I see a few potential problems. First D3 is not a drug, so you can't test it like a drug. Individual response to supplementation varies wildly. You would have to split into groups based on starting D3 level (measured in the same month of the year for all participants) and achieved D3 level (measured a few months later). You'd like to see results based on sex and skin color. Also, there may be a delay in effect, so you'd like to see results with the first year excluded. I'd like to know if they tracked participants' intake of D3 outside of what was given to them.

I saw an article in USA today about this study. Despite the claim of no benefit, one of the researchers was quoted as saying vitamin D caused a 25% reduction in cancer deaths and fish oil lowered heart attack risk 28%.

OTOH, there are benefits to sunshine beyond vitamin D. It produces nitric oxide which lowers blood pressure and probably has other benefits. If you're in the sun long enough to sweat, you'll activate heat shock proteins, which seem to be very beneficial.

 

[Blueskies123]

I don’t use sunscreen unless I will be outside for hours.

1) Look at the top of your forearm, now flip your forearm over and look at the skin on the bottom of your forearm. Would you like all your skin to look like the skin on the bottom of your forearm, especially on your face. If so, wear sunscreen every day.

2) I have had about a dozen basal and squamous cancers removed from my face and body. I wear sun screen every day and take a vitamin D supplement.

 

[EarlyBirdly]

The need for sunlight has never been in question. We do. For a variety of reasons, and production of vitamin D is just one of them.

I have taken D3 for about 10 years after a Blood Panel ( and health issues ) indicated very low levels. This is usually due to aging and the decreasing ability of the gastrointestinal system to absorb some nutrients/vitamins. Happens to many, not all, with age. When that happens no amount of sunlight will correct the situation.

Like most everything on this Planet...Sunlight is good for you, but only in moderation.

 

[zinger1457]

I spend a lot of time out in the AZ sun, golfing 3-4 times a week and often hiking the other days, I always wear sunscreen. My D3 levels came back low during my annual blood test about 5 years ago and my doctor told me to start taking a D3 supplement. All D3 test have been normal since I started taking the supplement (2400IU three times a week).

 

[Ronstar]

My blood work routinely indicates vitamin d deficiency. I take vitamin d drops, and an increase in dose has not affected my vitamin d level in the past. I spend 2 -6 hours a day outside and I never wear sunscreen. I almost always wear a hat, short sleeve shirt, and shorts/pants. So I don’t get sun on my back or chest. In the past, sun exposure time also has not affected vitamin d levels. I’m getting new blood work in a few weeks. I’ll ask the doc how to fix the low vitamin d number, and she’ll probably suggest more sun and more drops.

 

[tmm99]

I was Vit-D deficient living in California, so I'm certain I'm Vit-D deficient living in Canda. My doc in Canada doesn't run a Vit-D panel - He says everyone needs to take Vit-D here. But Vit-D tabs don't seem to do much for me.

Here's my story. I play volleyball and have been playing pretty serious vball for the last 2-3 years. I started having double vision after about an hour or an hour and a half of play, I believe, due to dry eyes. I started doing nasal irrigation before my games, and that seemed to take care of this problem up to a point. (I drink tons of fluid, hydrate myself with electrolytes, etc but they didn't seem to do much to alleviate the double vision for some reason.) I don't want to get into all the experiments I did to finally get to this conclusion, so to make the story short, I started going to a tanning salon to replenish my Vit-D. I only do 8 minutes once a week or so on average, and I cover my face and my hands because I don't want any extra wrinkles in this area. I am tanning slightly (I'm Asian) even with just 8 minutes of use of the tanning bed.

Anyway, my double vision is completely gone. No nasal irrigation, nothing and it's just gone. I didn't do the tanning for 2 weeks and my double vision came back after 2.5-3 hours of pretty intense vball (tournament) so I'm trying to do 8 minutes once a week.

I started tanning in the winter months to keep my winter blues away and this eye thing is just a nice, added benefit. I didn't know that Vit-D had any impact on the eyes.

 

[Sarah in SC]

I read that article a little while ago and found it interesting enough to download a vitamin D app for a while. I supplement daily with one, because my bloodwork showed I was low. I work inside and wear sunscreen when I’ll be outside a lot. Fair hair and pale skin means I’ve had a lot of sunburns over the years.

I do think that most everyone needs more vitamin D than they get from food and sun exposure with the exception of people outside all day.

 

[GrayHare]

People need to be aware that a low blood D3 value can be caused by certain infections that consume it in the process of creating 1,25D. In such a situation supplementing vitamin D can be harmful because it can raise your 1,25D level dangerously high. A low D3 test result should be followed by a 1,25D test, and only if that is also low should supplementaion be considered. I am not a doctor, and I don't even play one on TV.

 

[ls99]

Is D3 a Vitamin or Hormone? The article calls it both.
"In November, one of the largest and most rigorous trials of the vitamin ever conducted—in which 25,871 participants received high doses for five years—found no impact on cancer, heart disease, or stroke."


Would be nice if the article described what "high dose" is. The abstract says 2000 IU.

 

[MikeWillRetire]

1) Look at the top of your forearm, now flip your forearm over and look at the skin on the bottom of your forearm. Would you like all your skin to look like the skin on the bottom of your forearm, especially on your face. If so, wear sunscreen every day.

I guess it depends on where you live, and how much sun exposure you received. My upper forearms aren't too scary. I dont' wear sunscreen unless I plan to be in the sun for hours. And even then, I prefer to cover up.

 

[ugeauxgirl]

1) Look at the top of your forearm, now flip your forearm over and look at the skin on the bottom of your forearm. Would you like all your skin to look like the skin on the bottom of your forearm, especially on your face. If so, wear sunscreen every day.

2) I have had about a dozen basal and squamous cancers removed from my face and body. I wear sun screen every day and take a vitamin D supplement.

I'm 47 so neither side of my arm looks particularly scary. I'm not arguing that sun causes skin damage. Clearly it does. What I'm wondering about is if lack of sunlight is WORSE for your overall health than sun exposure.

 

[Teacher Terry]

At 65 my arms aren’t scary. A little sun is good for you.