The Vitamin D Cure

More recent data suggests that too much ultraviolet light in the A spectrum (UVA) relative to the B spectrum (UVB) places us at greater risk for skin cancer. This makes sense because UVB is available at midday and UVA throughout the day. As our culture has moved indoors for work we are missing the midday sun and only getting AM and PM sun high in UVA and low in UVB, hence increasing our skin cancer risk. Maybe those Europeans who take sun breaks (siesta) in the middle of the day are on to something healthy.

The key, which is discussed in Chapter 5, is to get UVB to make enough vitamin D and then cover up with clothing or sunscreen. See our Sun Exposure Calculator to determine the number of minutes you need in real time.