It wasn’t that long ago that we were cautioned to avoid the sun at all costs but lately we’ve realised that the sun plays a very important role in maintaining our health especially because of the role it plays in Vitamin D production. Vitamin D is best known for its ability to protect our bones, however this is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the benefits this important vitamin offers. Vitamin D is also very protective of our health with evidence showing an association between low vitamin D levels and increased risk of colorectal cancer and cardiovascular disease. In fact, it is now said that if your blood serum levels of Vitamin D fall within the bottom 25 percent of what is considered normal, this significantly increases your likelihood of dying from most of the common diseases.
The conclusion is that some sun exposure is important for our health. So it appears the answer is to be sensible about sun exposure, avoid the heat of the day and improve our skin’s natural sun protective mechanisms so we can get the best of both worlds. Summer sun care is particularly important as we move into the summer months, so over the next few summer weeks, join us in learning some simple ways of making your skin more ‘sun resilient’.