Daily dosages of Sun: Benefits of Sunlight

When my mother came to visit us, she always insisted that we all should sit outside in the sun at least for 20 minutes after breakfast, of course during weekends. I enjoyed sitting there with everyone, forgetting about the household chores, chatting or reading a book. Of course after 20 minutes, I would be rushing to complete the household works.She insisted this every weekend and finally it has become a ritual for me.

Most of our generation must be Vitamin D deficient. Majority of us are indoor creatures. We all should remember to break our daily schedules and soak ourselves in the sun. Even in Yoga Atapa Snana is a termed used for sun bathing. (Atapa : Sunlight, Snana : Bath).

Benefits of Sunlight

• An excellent source of Vitamin D: When we are outdoor our body creates vitamin D from direct sunlight we receive. Vitman D is essential for healthy bones. Deficiency of Vitamin – D can also results in chronic disease including Type-2 diabetes, cancers, cardiovascular disease.

 “Vitamin D is metabolized sequentially in the liver and kidneys into 25-hydroxyvitamin D which is a major circulating form and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D which is the biologically active form respectively. 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D plays an important role in regulating calcium and phosphate metabolism for maintenance of metabolic functions and for skeletal health. Most cells and organs in the body have a vitamin D receptor and many cells and organs are able to produce 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D. As a result 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D influences a large number of biologic pathways which may help explain association studies relating vitamin D deficiency and living at higher latitudes with increased risk for many chronic diseases including autoimmune diseases, some cancers, cardiovascular disease, infectious disease, schizophrenia and type 2 diabetes.” Source

• Improves the mood : Vitamin D deficiency is associated with low mood and and worse cognitive performance in older adults. Source
  

  Benefits of sunlight – Boost moods

• Sunlight is the natural antiseptic : If you want your home to be free from fungi, yeasts, bacteria, viruses, mites, just open up the windows and doors and let the sunrays come sneak into your rooms. Sunlight is an excellent source to kill bacteria, viruses on different sources including your skin.
  

  Benefits of sunlight

• Sunlight lowers cholesterol : Sunlight deficiency could increase blood cholesterol by allowing squalene metabolism to progress to cholesterol synthesis rather than to vitamin D synthesis as would occur with greater amounts of sunlight exposure, and the increased concentration of blood cholesterol during the winter months, confirmed in this study, may well be due to reduced sunlight exposure. Source
• Sunlight lowers blood pressure :Sunlight exposure reduces human blood pressure by releasing nitric oxide metabolites from storage in the skin. Researches have seen that blood pressures are higher in winter than in summer.

A balanced exposure to the sun can work wonders. Be careful not to burn in the sun and avoid too much exposure. Expose your arms, legs and avoid the exposure of the face. Daily 15-20 minutes of sunlight is generally recommended. So, just step out and bask in the sun.