Does lack of sunlight shorten life?

Swedish scientists from the Karolinska Institute found that insufficient exposure to sunlight can be dangerous to health and even affect life expectancy.

To reach this conclusion, the scientists analyzed the data of about 30 thousand women. Periodically, the participants were required to answer questions in surveys in which they were required to indicate how often they stay in the sun, how many hours on average they are exposed to sunlight, whether they visit a tanning bed and whether they use sunscreen creams.

The study lasted 20 years. During this period, 2,545 women from the list of respondents died. Scientists have noticed a certain regularity, according to which many of them spent too little time in the sun, to put it simply, they were faced with a lack of sunlight.

Those surveyed with normal levels of vitamin D, also called the “sunshine vitamin,” had a lower risk of premature death. According to the authors of the study, the results show that the increased mortality may be related precisely to insufficient sunlight.

It should be noted that vitamin D3 is synthesized in human skin only and only under the influence of ultraviolet sunlight.

The main function of D vitamins is to ensure the absorption of calcium and phosphorus from food, thus ensuring the strength of bones and teeth. Vitamin D is also involved in the regulation of cell proliferation, exchange processes and stimulates the synthesis of a number of hormones.

Therefore, vitamins of group D must be included in the human diet. And for this reason, moderate sunbathing is not only a pleasant, but also a useful activity.

At the same time, excessive exposure to the sun’s rays can lead to dryness and roughening of the skin, the appearance of wrinkles and other signs of premature aging.

The more serious consequences of abusing exposure to sunlight can be burns, allergic reactions and even skin cancer.

Another adverse consequence of excessive sun exposure is sunstroke. This severe condition leads to loss of consciousness, which occurs absolutely suddenly during prolonged exposure to the sun.

The most dangerous disease that can develop as a result of long-term exposure to the sun is cancer of the largest organ of the human body.

Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States, and the number of cases globally continues to rise.

In this regard, scientists from the British Institute for Cancer Research made a sensational and at the same time important discovery, namely that the dark skin color of the inhabitants of southern countries protects them from the harmful effects of the sun’s rays. The mutation, according to them, took place through natural selection.

In order to confirm their assumptions, British scientists conducted a large-scale study, as a result of which it was proved that 80% and more of albino people from countries in Equatorial Africa develop skin cancer by the age of 30 and less than 10% of them lived to the age of 40 and based on this data they reached the above conclusion.

It should be noted that not all skin surfaces are equally sensitive to the sun’s rays. The skin of the abdomen, waist, chest is the most sensitive to ultraviolet rays, while the skin of the wrists, hands and face is the least sensitive.