10 Health Benefits Of Basking In The Sun
10 Health Benefits Of Basking In The Sun. With winter here, many enjoy chilling out enjoying the warmth of the sun. While there are a lot of good reasons to get sun, the sun emits ultraviolet (UV) radiation. UV radiation can penetrate the skin and damage cell DNA. This can lead to skin cancer. The health benefits of moderate sun exposure may however outweigh the risks. Check out the following 10 health benefits below.
1. Vitamin D
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble essential vitamin that plays multiple roles in the body. In addition to maintaining bone health, vitamin D can protect against heart disease, diabetes, and cancers of the breast, prostate, and colon. Vitamin D is necessary for healthy immune function and may reduce inflammation, pain, depression, and sleep.
2. Sleep and Mood
Our natural rhythm is programmed for us to be outdoors while the sun is shining, and in bed at night. In addition to producing vitamin D, exposure to bright sunlight interacts with our pineal gland and regulates melatonin production, which influences our sleep cycles. Getting outside during the day and sleeping in complete darkness can boost our sleep, energy levels, and mood.
3. Helps Some Skin Conditions
UV is used in the treatment of skin conditions such as psoriasis. This is a condition where the skin sheds its cells too quickly and develops itchy, scaly patches. Exposure to UV slows the growth of the skin cells and relieves the symptoms.
4. Sun Exposure Boosts Growth In Children
This benefit is especially true for infants. Studies reveal the amount of sun exposure in the first few months of a baby’s life has an effect on how tall the child grows. Many cultures around the world recognize this fact and expose children to mild sun to boost growth and height.
5. Sun Exposure Eases Mild Depression
Moderate sun exposure, however, increases levels of natural antidepressants in the brain that can actually help relieve this and other forms of mild depression. That’s because on sunny days the brain produces more serotonin, a mood-lifting chemical, than on darker days.
6. Improve Metabolism; Fight Obesity
Several studies show correlation between sun exposure and an increase in metabolism, although the reasoning isn’t cut and dry. One hypothesis that makes a lot of sense to me is that decreased time in the sun leads the body to believe it’s winter, causing the body’s metabolic processes to shift into a winter fat-storing mode.
7. Sunlight lowers cholesterol
The sun converts high cholesterol in the blood into steroid hormones and the sex hormones we need for reproduction.
8. Reduce Stroke Risk
There are likely a lot of factors at work here, but in one survey people who lived in areas with less sun exposure had a stroke risk that was 60% higher than those who lived in sunshine-y regions.
9. Strengthens Immune System
Exposing your body to the sun leads to the increase of white blood cells count in the blood vessels. The white blood cells defend the body against infection.
10. Sun Protection Factor
Brief repeated exposures to sunlight may be beneficial for our melatonin levels, however longer sun exposures can result in skin and eye damage. So those spending more time outdoors should to take precautions to protect against the sun’s damaging effects.
