For Thousands of years civilizations have been built around daily worship of the sun. On a visit to any ancient history museum you will find the forgotten carvings and paintings discovered from every part of the globe, from the Egyptian hieroglyphs of the sun god Amon-Ra to the Roman Empire’s Apollo, created simply to glorify the sun. This may seem strange however to our modern lifestyle. Most of us spend our days shielded from the sun, either because we are stuck indoors or because we are slathered in shielding sunscreen. We all hear the same old message repeated to us, that we must protect ourselves from the cancer causing sun, and therefore are constantly reminded to take the necessary precautions. However…
Did you know that an estimated 1 billion people are suffering from Vitamin D deficiency?
That means that those of us who are Vitamin D deficient are living with a condition that has been shown to cause, muscle weakness, psoriasis, chronic kidney disease, diabetes, asthma, periodontal disease, cardiovascular disease, schizophrenia, depression and cancer.
Did you know that increasing low levels of Vitamin D has been shown to reverse these conditions, as well as prevent osteoporosis, and osteopenia, lower blood pressure in people with hypertension, decrease inflammation, reduce risk of allergies in children and adolescents, and regulate cholesterol levels in the blood?
Now did you know that getting enough Vitamin D is as simple as stepping out into the sun?
If the solution is so simple why are so many of us lacking in Vitamin D?
When did we all become so scared of stepping into the sun?
In 1979 the International Dermatological Research Center (CIRD) was founded by L’Oréal and Nestlé to “improve knowledge of the skin’s physiology and ageing process.”
This, coinciding with the discovery of the thinning ozone layer, began a corporation fueled
Sun-scare campaign designed to sell products that would protect us all from the sun.
But, more recently, organizations such as The Environmental Working Group have found the following sunscreen ingredients to be harmful to human health.
Octocrylene – a viscous, oily liquid that is a clear and colorless organic compound. It has been found able to penetrate into the skin where it acts as a photosensitizer.
Octyl-methoxycinnamate (OMC) – has been reported to cause photosensitization and photo allergic effects. It easily penetrates the upper layer of the skin and, when exposed to UV radiation, generates free radicals in skin cells. Recent studies indicate that OMC may also have significant undesirable effects as a xenoestrogen.
PABA – prohibited as a sunscreen ingredient in countries such as Canada due to its ability to change DNA in human cells, resulting in increased susceptibility in some people to skin cancer. PABA has been found to form potent free radicals when exposed to UV light.
Benzophenone-3 – forms free radicals which can initiate a chain reaction that causes damage to anything it comes in contact with, including cell DNA.
Oxybenzone (benzophenone 3) – a derivative which rapidly oxidizes into a potent free radical and is linked to cell damage. This ingredient has also been linked with allergies and xenoestrogenic properties. A recent study found that mothers with high levels of oxybenzone in their bodies were more likely to give birth to underweight babies, which has been linked with many health complications later in life.
Do you really want to cover your own or your children’s bodies with anything on that list?
Do you really want to suffer from the effects of Vitamin D deficiency?
Perhaps we all might be better off taking a tip from our ancestors and step, uncovered into the sun just a bit more often. Maybe we will find out why our ancestors thought it was so important.
Sources: http://drbenkim.com/natural-sunscreen.htm , http://www.novamagazine.com.au/article_archive/2008/08_12_toxicsunscreen.htm