Over the last few decades we have all been bombarded with messages about how exactly important it is to stay out of the sun. We realize precisely how real skin cancer is along with the risks associated with it so we do everything we can think to do to keep it from happening to us. We slather on layers and layers of the greatest SPF sunscreens that we can buy. We wear large floppy hats. We wear long pants and sleeves even during the hottest months of the year. We try and stick to the shady areas-some individuals have even taken to carrying parasols around with them to keep the sun from ever making contact with their skin. Now we’re starting to discover that sunlight can sometimes be pretty helpful. Can direct sunlight actually help you?
There is a new study that demonstrates people who let themselves get some exposure to direct sunshine aren’t as prone to come down with MS as those who take steps to minimize sunlight contact on skin. Originally the study was to see how Vitamin D impacted the indicators of Multiple Sclerosis. It didn’t take much time for them to realize that it is the Vitamin D our bodies make after exposure to sunshine that is at the center of the issue.
It has been acknowledged for years that the sunshine and Vitamin D can be used to hinder the abnormal immune system workings that are thought to contribute to MS. This study, however, focuses on the affects of sunlight on individuals who are experiencing the very earliest symptoms of the disease. The actual purpose is to see how sunlight and Vitamin D may affect the symptoms that are now known as “precursors” to the actual disease symptoms.
Unfortunately there are not a large amount of methods to really quantify the hypothesis of the study. The goal of the study is to figure out whether or not sunlight can actually prevent the disease. Sadly, scientists have realized that the only approach to prove this definitively is to monitor a person for his entire life. This is the only way to properly assess the previously existent levels of Vitamin D in a person’s blood before the symptoms of MS start to show themselves. The way it appears these days, and has stood (widely recognized) for decades is that people who live in warm and sunny climates and who get more exposure to direct natural light are less likely to develop MS than those who live in dark or cold climates and get very little exposure to the sun.
The fact that the danger of developing skin cancer rises proportionally to the amount of time you spend in direct sunlight (without protection) is also a problem. So, in an attempt to keep one illness from setting in, you could be inadvertently causing another. Of course, when it gets found quickly, skin cancer is very treatable and can even be cured. This isn’t true for MS.
So should you improve your direct exposure to the sunshine so that you don’t get MS? Your physician may help you determine whether or not this is an option for you. Your health care provider can examine your current health status, your medical history and even your genetics to determine if you are even at risk for the disease in the first place. From there a family doctor can help you determine the best ways to keep the disease at bay.
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