In my opinion, the last two weeks of Anatomy, Exercise and Bio-mechanics with Dr. Jordan Mackner have been the two most interesting weeks of the semester so far. We’ve been talking about nutrition, and Dr. J says one of the most important supplements a person can take is Vitamin D.
A common misconception is that Vitamin D is a vitamin. It’s actually a hormone, and every cell in our bodies has Vitamin D receptors. It’s that important to our overall health, and boy do we need it! Sun exposure, and the Vitamin D our bodies produce because of it (UV rays interact with the cholesterol on our skin to create the hormone), reduces cancers in the following categories: breast, colon, prostate, early-stage lung, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and melanoma.
That’s not a misprint. Vitamin D and sensible sun exposure decrease our risk of getting skin cancer. The burning of the skin and other topical carcinogens are what increases our risk.
Have you ever stopped to consider why skin cancer has increased despite the fact that our sun exposure has decreased? A hundred years ago, and throughout evolutionary history, sun exposure was and has been much higher. Now, most of us work inside in climate-controlled environments.
A lack of Vitamin D may be partly to blame. For every death from skin cancer due to excess UV rays, more than 200 people die from all other cancers caused by insufficient UV and Vitamin D. Other factors include an increase in Omega 6 fatty acids, a decrease in Omega III fatty acids, fruits, vegetables, and antioxidants.
Sunscreens are also a likely culprit for the increase. Most sunscreens screen out both UVA and UVB radiations. UVB is what produces Vitamin D on our skin, and UVA is the radiation that causes skin cancer. You can’t screen out one and allow the other. Sunscreens also contain toxic chemicals and metals. Applying it directly to the skin means those elements bypass the liver and get absorbed directly into the bloodstream. A sunscreen of SPF 8 decreases Vitamin D production by 97.5% while a sunscreen of SPF 15 decreases Vitamin D production by 99.9%.
There are several variables that also impact the production of Vitamin D. One of those variables is time of day. The greatest production occurs during high sun hours. A good rule of thumb is that if your shadow is taller than you, you’re not producing Vitamin D. Other factors include skin pigmentation, clothing (which impairs UVB radiation), and the time of year.
The body doesn’t produce as much Vitamin D during the winter months. In fact, your body can only produce enough Vitamin D year round in two of the lower 48 states: Arizona and Florida. It may just be coincidence, but both colon and breast cancer mortality rates are at their highest in the Upper Midwest and the Northeast. Those parts of the country experience the longest and coldest winters and the lowest Vitamin D production.
Vitamin D inhibits cancer by decreasing cancer cell proliferation, invasiveness, the potential to spread, new blood vessel formation (how tumors grow), and inflammation. Vitamin D also increases the death of cancer cells and plays a role in fighting infections because it acts as a potent antibiotic and increases the antimicrobial action of proteins. Some believe there is an infectious element to cancer, and a lack of Vitamin D could be a possible trigger mechanism.
Vitamin D deficiency plays a role in autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, cancer, multiple sclerosis, Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes (Type 1 is almost non-existent at the equator where sun exposure and therefore Vitamin D production is at its greatest).
Other benefits of Vitamin D include: decreased age-related DNA damage, a lowered inflammatory response, and the prevention or reduction of psoriasis, eczema, insomnia, hearing loss, muscle pain, periodontal disease, asthma, cystic fibrosis, migraines, depression, Alzheimer’s disease, and schizophrenia. It’s also used as a chemotherapy agent.
These are all good things. But don’t just go out and load up on Vitamin D. Too much, and you can overdose.