Get your summer tan in a healthy way.

Do you want that summer glow that shows you are fit and healthy and is there a way to do this safely? Especially as I can no longer use sun cream, what should I do?

Albir beach, looking at its best.

Sunshine is a great way to get Vitamin D into your body. Eating foods rich in vitamin D is also another way, so eat more fish such as salmon, tuna and mackerel (avoid farmed as they often have dies added to them) are sources of this vitamin, as are egg yolks, cheese and beef liver. Vitamin D-fortified milk and other foods are also good sources. Vitamin D is important as it aids absorption of calcium into your bones to keep them strong throughout your life. If we don’t have vitamin D to help this process then your bones can come under attack as your body can turn the calcium in them into energy – not recommended. Vitamin D also has a role in reducing inflammation, preventing malignant cell growth, looking after your immune system and lifts your mood So, if you ever wondered why all your aches and pains from the winter months are easier in the summer and that you feel really happy on holiday then now you know why. It’s Vitamin D. There is more research going on that links low levels of Vitamin D to

•      cancer
•      obesity
•      cardiovascular disease
•      depression
•      multiple sclerosis
•      arthritis
•      diabetes
•      high blood pressure
•      ME and CFS
•      Hypothyroidism and especially Hashimotos thyroidism.

It’s not clear yet if these illnesses cause vitamin D deficiency or not having vitamin D causes these illnesses.

How do you avoid being deficient
Most of us have indoor jobs and now quite often also take our exercise indoors, using computer games – being outdoors in the sun is not a consideration.
Add in using sun block, covering up from the sun, being over 50 and not taking a vitamin D and calcium supplement then we can make things worse.
Getting out in the sun is great and the recommendations vary from

Get out in the sun 3 times a week for 15 minutes.
Get out in the sun every day with 40% of your body exposed for 20 minutes. We all know that sunshine in northern Europe can be hard to find, so recommending you get out 3 times a week and have a brisk walk in the sun (will do your tryptophan and serotonin good too) is not easy, so do look into supplementation. Again the recommended doses vary and the guideline given to me today by my Doctor is 1200mg calcium and 20mcg vitamin D3.

During the winter I am actually taking 10,000iu a day. During the times I can get the sun then I will stick to my Doctors dose. I find that my winter dose of 10,000iu, eases the joint pain and lifts my mood. Even friends who have tried this have all agreed the same. I’ve been working on my sun tan since the first chance we had of sun in spring, building up very slowly my sunshine exposure. I don’t use creams on my skin as I try to keep my body and what I put both in it and on it, as organic and natural as possible.
I’ve not burnt, nor has my skin gone dryer or more wrinkled – apparently all the water I drink is helping me there. So slowly does it is the best advice for natural Vitamin D.
Doing my yoga in the early morning sun gives me three benefits. the sun and vitamin d, exercise for my lymphatic and thyroid and meditation as I concentrate on ‘now’. Finally, Vitamin D can be your good friend in menopause. Finding healthy ways to get enough may help you stay strong and prevent many age-related health problems. I’ve just decided that whilst I will get healthy sun light such as early morning and late afternoon, that I would rather have a healthy inner glow that a tan to impress!  

As the sun goes down, I think of how much Vitamin D I’ve captured today.

 Recovering Me
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