Importance of Sunshine

20-30mins of reasonable sun exposure is so beneficial for the whole endocrine system.

There are so many people who have hormone imbalances and emotional issues and a big contributing factor to this is a lack of vitamin D aka lack of sunshine.

When UV light shines into the body, the waves move through your body and they hit the cholesterol inside the arteries, changing the cholesterol into vitamin D – which is actually a hormone & this hormone, then affects the entire endocrine system.

Unfortunately over the years we have somehow allowed ourselves to be trained to fear the sun.

But get this, the countries around the world that are the most scared of the sun and not getting in the sun have the highest rates of skin cancer. And Australia is one of them.

Why?

Because those that are most scared of the sun are lathering themselves in toxic sunscreens. Some of them are carcinogenic and you are baking these chemicals right into your skin, blocking the bodies ability to create vitamin D.

If you can build a tan, especially in the summer, and get your vitamin D levels to over 100, you will feel the difference.

Did you know the lack of sunshine aka vitamin D is a major contributing factor for hormone imbalances and emotional issues?

I know we have been feared to believe “sun exposure” is bad, but really 20-30 minutes daily (not in the middle of the day) is all you need to build your vitamin D levels to an ideal level.

And yes that means sun exposure without sunscreen! 🤭

Sunscreen believe it or not is a major contributing factor to some of our major illnesses in the world.

🌱PLANT BASED SPF OILS🌱

There are some plant-based oils that naturally contain SPF that can be used instead of sunscreen.

• Red Raspberry Seed Oil SPF 28-50

• Carrot Seed Oil SPF 38-40

• Wheatgerm Oil SPF 20

• Soybean Oil SPF 10

• Coconut Oil SPF 4-10

• Macadamia Oil - SPF 6

• 
  

If you can build a tan, especially in the summer, and get your vitamin D levels to over 100, you will feel the difference.

7 Health Benefits of Sunlight

Do you know how important it is to get a little sunshine?

Scientifically, sunshine has a lot of benefits for our bodies. Here are seven great reasons to get outside and soak in the sun.

1. Improves your sleep Your body creates a hormone called melatonin that is critical to helping you sleep. Because your body starts producing it when it’s dark, you usually start to feel sleepy two hours after the sun sets, which is one of the reasons our bodies naturally stay up later in the summer. Research indicates that an hour of natural light in the morning will help you sleep better. Sunshine regulates your circadian rhythm by telling your body when to increase and decrease your melatonin levels. So, the more daylight exposure you can get, the better your body will produce melatonin when it’s time to go to sleep. 2. Reduces stress Melatonin also lowers stress reactivity and being outside will help your body naturally regulate melatonin, which can help reduce your stress level. Additionally, because you're often doing something active when you’re outside (walking, playing, etc.), that extra exercise also helps to lower stress.

3. Maintains strong bones One of the best (and easiest) ways to get vitamin D is by being outside. Our bodies produce vitamin D when exposed to sunlight—about 15 minutes in the sun a day is adequate if you’re fair skinned. And since Vitamin D helps your body maintain calcium and prevents brittle, thin, or misshapen bones, soaking in sun may be just what the doctor ordered.

4. Helps keep the weight off Getting outside for 30 minutes sometime between 8 a.m. and noon has been linked to weight loss. There, of course, could be other factors to this, but it seems there's a connection between sunlight in the early morning and weight loss.

5. Strengthens your immune system Vitamin D is also critical for your immune system, and with consistent exposure to sunlight, you can help strengthen it. A healthy immune system can help reduce the risk of illness, infections, some cancers, and mortality after surgery.

6. Fights off depression It’s not just in your head; there’s a scientific reason being in the sunshine improves your mood. Sunshine boosts your body’s level of serotonin, which is a chemical that improves your mood and helps you stay calm and focused. Increased exposure to natural light may help ease the symptoms of seasonal affective disorder--a change in mood that typically occurs in the fall and winter months when there are fewer hours of daylight.

7. Can give you a longer life A study that followed 30,000 Swedish women revealed that those who spent more time in the sun lived six months to two years longer than those with less sun exposure. More research needs to be done in this area, but it’s something scientists are continuing to study. Of course, a little sunshine can go a long way (and too much is harmful for our skin). Depending on the shade of your skin, scientists estimate your body can produce vitamin D in about 5 to 30 minutes in the sun. If you're wearing sunscreen, you may not produce as much vitamin D. If you're outside for some much-needed vitamin D, don't expose bare skin longer than 5 to 30 minutes.

Hope these tips were helpful and gives you an insight of the importance of sunshine. So, let's kick summer with a bang and make the most of it while we can!!

Much love,

Maria xoxo