Crystal Nelson
If you are in a bad mood or constantly struggling with infections – then you lack vitamin D. The sun helps to prevent a vitamin D deficiency. You can find out why this is so important here.
“When the sun shines, I feel a lot better!” Can you agree with this sentence? No wonder, because the UV rays set the body’s own vitamin D production in motion. And if the body lacks this substance, it will gloomy mood. Vitamin D has other important functions for health! It is all the more frightening that, according to expert estimates, the majority of the population in our part of the world suffers from a vitamin D deficiency.
Vitamin D: Almost a hormone
For many years, vitamin D alone was considered an important factor in calcium metabolism and bone stability. Researchers have now discovered new functions of this vitamin. The only one, by the way, that the body can produce itself, which is why many experts call it a hormone. It is now known that a sufficiently high vitamin D level can prevent a large number of diseases.
Vitamin D: soak up the sun for the defense
Vitamin D plays a central role in cell metabolism. If this is disturbed, the organs cannot work properly. Today we know that vitamin D protects against infections and inflammation – colds, but also autoimmune diseases such as Crohn’s disease or rheumatism. It also regulates blood pressure. Good care reduces the risk of heart attack and stroke. The effect is also positive for the brain: vitamin D can protect against seasonal or postpartum depression. Likewise against nervous diseases such as Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s. And finally, a sufficiently high vitamin D level can even inhibit tumor growth.
Vitamin D: pure sun or sun protection?
In order to be able to form vitamin D, UV-B rays from the sun must hit the skin. But in winter the sun’s rays are very weak here, and we spend less time outdoors. In summer, on the other hand, we often use sunscreen with a high sun protection factor. All of this means that vitamin D formation is made more difficult.
Vitamin D: Use the sun and prevent a deficiency
Soak up the sun, even without sun protection! It’s a tightrope walk in summer, but even sunbathing that doesn’t last longer than half of the skin’s own protection time helps. In winter, 15 to 30 minutes outdoors on a clear day is perfectly safe. In order to be optimally supplied with vitamin D even in the dark season when there is hardly any sun, you should regularly eat foods such as fish, eggs, or mushrooms. Unlike other nutrients, vitamin D is relatively insensitive to food storage and processing.
