Here Comes The Sun!

As you crawl out from under that rock we call winter, embrace the sunshine for increased health and vitality! The sun makes life on Earth possible. It’s energy and bright rays can bring several benefits to our physical and mental health. Sluff off the winter darkness and step into the light!

Benefits of Sunshine:

• Sunlight and its UV kills bacteria. Open your blinds and let the sunshine into your home. Sunlight can kill the bacteria that surrounds us. Let it fall upon the surfaces inside your home and reap its benefits!
• Sunlight has been proven to reduce blood pressure. Just a bit of sunlight on your skin can increase the amount of nitric oxide in your blood, thus opening up your blood vessels in a healthy way and reducing your blood pressure.
• Sunlight strengthens your immune system. Exposure to sunlight greatly increases your Vitamin D levels which play an important role in immune system health. Just a bit of exposure to the sun each day can keep the nasties away!
• Sunlight can also strengthen your bones. Vitamin D plays another important role in strengthening your bones. It helps your body absorb calcium and can play a big part in reducing your risk of osteoporosis.
• Exposure to sunlight can help people with skin conditions to heal. People experiencing psoriasis, eczema, and acne show improved skin health with moderate exposure to the sunshine.
• Sunlight helps regulate your circadian rhythms. Exposure to sunlight will help your brain and body get into good synchronization with the rhythms of the day/circadian rhythms.
• Sunlight improves sleep. With an improvement in your circadian rhythms, comes much better sleep, all thanks to sunshine! The more regularly you get sunshine into your life, the better your sleep will be. Morning time is the best for taking in some bright sunlight. It can even increase your melatonin production, which aids in sleeping better more naturally.
• Sunlight reduces stress. With sunshine influencing your melatonin levels for the better, your stress levels will also go down dramatically.
• Sunlight can super boost your mood. Sunshine increases the levels of serotonin in your body and brain. This can improve your mood greatly! As we go through the trudge of winter we often don’t realize how the lack of sunshine and corresponding low levels of serotonin have impacted our moods. Suddenly, Bam! A sunny day hits and your mood can instantly change!
• Sunshine can help with weight loss. There is some evidence that getting sunshine, especially in the morning, can help a person lose weight and keep it off.
• Sunshine can help to prevent cancer. A lack of vitamin D has been linked to an increase in certain cancers. Those with some exposure to sunlight tend to have less risk of cancer than those who avoid the rays of life.
• Sunlight wards off depression. With all of these benefits in mind, it goes without saying that sunshine also helps to ward off depression. People living in sunny climates have much lower levels of depression than those in the higher latitudes.
• Perhaps most importantly, sunshine can help people live longer. Research with a group of Swedish women has shown that those who got more sunshine lived 6 months to 2 years longer than those without as much sunshine in their lives. 

How Much Is Enough?

Poonam Sachdev says “This answer is different for everyone. It depends on your skin tone, age, health history, diet, and where you live. In general, scientists think 5 to 15 minutes -- up to 30 if you’re dark-skinned -- is about right to get the most out of it without causing any health problems.”

Ways To Get More Sunshine:

Kara-Marie Hall, RN, gives some practical advice for the modern person on getting more sunshine. She says “In today’s technology-driven society — where more people are working from home — it may be difficult to get enough sunlight each day. Here are a few ideas to help you get some more sunshine:

• Take a brief walk during your work break or study break.
• Take one of your virtual meetings outside.
• Park your car further away from store entrances so you can soak up some sunlight as you walk in.
• Eat your lunch or snack outside.
• Exercise outside.
• Plant a few flowers or vegetables outside.

Getting a moderate amount of sunshine into your day-to-day life can pay off in dividends for your physical and mental health. Research has also shown that the beneficial effects of sunshine are maximized when we let the sun hit our skin that is often most covered. In other words, get those buns into the sun!

Try mindfully adding more sunshine in your life and see what can improve! Tell me how it goes in your next session with Posture Massage! I have a love affair with the sun, so this is one of my favorite topics!