How to stay healthy with decreasing sunlight

The existence of almost all kinds of life on Earth is possible through the presence and contact with sunlight. For human beings it’s not an exception.  The scientist and photobiologist John N. Ott claims that humans are not exception to the need of the sunbeams, that are essential for mental and physical health, muscle strength, civilized behaviour, energy and learning.

It’s a major impact in our lives if we have sun deprivation. Staying out of the sun can wreck our health in the north hemisphere especially during autumn and winter.

The sun supplies us with heat and light and with a healthy living.

Seasonal changes can affect us more than we expect

Was Leo Tolstoy affected by sunlight deprivation?

“Just as a painter needs light in order to put the finishing touches to his picture, so I need an inner light, which I feel I never have enough of in the autumn”.

This quote, transcribed from “Letters to Strakhov” suggests that Leo Tolstoy might have been affected by a disorder called SAD that is a type of disorder that happens at the same time every year, starting in the fall and may continue into the winter months.

Attention to autumn and the changes our bodies are facing this time of the year

Autumn is a time of major transition. We are in between two more extreme seasons: summer and winter. Because of this transition, our vulnerability increases with the changes we experience in the weather and sunlight.

What does SAD stand for?

SAD is the abbreviation for Seasonal Affective Disorder and is a type of depression that occurs at the same time every year. If you have Seasonal Affective Disorder, your symptoms start in the fall and may continue into the winter months, taking away your energy and making you feel moody.

SAD, also known as winter depression, or seasonal depression, is a mood disorder in which people experience depressive symptoms during the autumn and winter, usually starting in September and October and ending in April or May, when spring begins.

Diagnose and symptoms of SAD

It takes more than just one winter depression to be diagnosed with SAD. Individuals must meet certain criteria:

the symptoms and their remission must have occurred during the last two consecutive years;

the seasonal depressive episodes must outnumber the non-seasonal depressive episodes in one’s lifetime.

The most common symptoms of SAD can be:

  • bad mood most of the day;
  • loss of interest in most activities;
  • lethargy and indifference;
  • more need of sleep than usual;
  • increased need for eating, specially cravings for carbohydrates;
  • which will culminate in weight gain;
  • loss of interest in sex (loss of sexual libido)

Who is more affected?

60-90% of people with SAD are women. A female between 15 and 55 is more likely to develop SAD.

SAD can be treated

If your symptoms are mild, and if they don’t interfere in your daily life, the light therapy may help to beat SAD.

Studies prove that 50-80% of light therapy users have complete remission of symptoms.

Remember to consult your physician before any treatment decisions are made.

SAD and the homeopathic treatment option

Homeopathic medicine will be chosen according to the holistic approach of Classical Homeopathy which takes into account all the individual symptoms from the patient and find a specific homeopathic medicine for him.

In this classical form of Homeopathy, each patient is evaluated individually and treated the same way. All the details of patient’s symptoms are noted such as the local sensations, types and locations of pains, the occurrence of symptoms related to weather, time of the day, time of the year etc.

Moreover, in the homeopathic approach great importance and emphasis is given to the individual characteristics of the patient, such as eating patterns, relationship with the climate, sleeping patterns, lifestyle, the history of past diseases of the patient, patterns of disease within the family.

After collecting all this vital information, a final evaluation is made where only one medication is given to the patient, treating him on a very deep level.

About homeopathic medicines

Homeopathic medicines are obtained from plant extracts, minerals, benign animal products etc. During their preparation, a method that involves serial dilutions of the original material is applied to the original source, yielding to the homeopathic medicine high healing power and leaving it free of toxic effects.

Homeopathic medicines are absolutely free from toxic effects, are harmless and free of side effects.

Don’t forget the power of Vitamin D

Days are already becoming shorter and soon we will have less hours of daylight. As a consequence, we will have less hours of exposure to the sun and its benefits. That is why we must be aware of the signs our bodies be showing in order to achieve a healthier and happier lifestyle.

Muscle weakness and pain – particularly during the winter – and easily fractured bones are some of the first symptoms of inadequate vitamin D levels. If you start presenting such symptoms you might have low levels of vitamin D3, which is produced through skin exposure to solar ultraviolet-B (UVB) light.

Vitamin D

Besides being produced endogenously when ultraviolet rays from sunlight strike the skin, vitamin D – a fat–soluble vitamin – is naturally present in a few foods and is added to many others.

Dark skinned people have larger concentrations of melanin and protection against exposure to ultraviolet light and skin cancers. Under equal sunlight exposure, light skinned people have about a tenfold greater risk of dying from skin cancer compared to those with dark skin.

While dark skin offers better protection from intense ultraviolet light, it may result in low vitamin D levels and has led to concern that darker skinned people living at relatively high latitude may have inadequate vitamin D levels.

Vitamin D benefits

Vitamin D has important benefits in reducing the risk of many conditions and diseases. Vitamin D is required for the proper absorption of calcium and immune system and neuromuscular function.

The health benefits of UVB and vitamin D include reduced risk for fractures, cancer, infectious diseases, autoimmune diseases, cardiovascular diseases, metabolic diseases, congestive heart failure, periodontal disease, etc.

Vitamin D may protect against a host of diseases, including osteoporosis (although osteoporosis is a multifactorial disease, vitamin D insufficiency can be an important contributing factor) heart disease, and cancers of the breast, prostate, and colon. Furthermore, sunlight has other hidden benefits—such as protecting against depression, insomnia, and an overactive immune system. Vitamin D sufficiency prevents rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults.

Numerous observational studies have found that serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels of 80 nmol/L (32 ng/mL) and above are associated with reduced risk of bone fractures, several cancers, multiple sclerosis, and type 1 (insulin-dependent) diabetes.

Sources of vitamin D

Europeans generally have low serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] levels owing to the high latitudes, largely indoor living, low natural dietary sources of vitamin D and lack of effective vitamin D fortification of food in most countries.

Very few foods in nature contain vitamin D. The flesh of fatty fish (such as salmon, tuna, and mackerel) and fish liver oils are among the best sources. Small amounts of vitamin D are found in beef liver, cheese, and egg yolks.

Wearing sunscreen blocks vitamin D production and going out when the sun is low in the horizon, such as morning and afternoon and winter, is not conducive to vitamin D production.

How much sun exposure do we need to build up vitamin D?

According to Dr. Michael Holick from Boston University, limited sun exposure of 5-10 minutes three times a week, during the spring, summer and fall, around the mid-day from 11am to 2pm, on the face and arms will provide enough vitamin D for an individual. This sun exposure will also allow for storage of some of the excess vitamin D during the winter, when the UVB rays will not reach some areas. For those with more pigmented skin an exposure of longer than 10 minutes is recommended.

This amount is also recommended by the Linus Pauling Institute, which also advises healthy adults to take a daily multivitamin supplement containing vitamin D.

How much vitamin D supplementation do we need?

Sun exposure, diet, skin colour and obesity have variable, substantial impact on body vitamin D levels.

In the report “Nutritional standards” of the Netherlands Health Council the following amount of vitamin D is recommended:

Recommended daily amounts of vitamin D in The Netherlands (in µg/day)*

Age Adequate intake;
exposure to sunlight
Acceptable
upper limit
Without Adequate

0-11 months 10 5 25
1-3 years 10 5 50
4-50 years 5 2,5 50
51-60 years 10 5 50
61-70 years 10 7,5 50
≥ 71 years 15 12,5 50
♀ pregnant 10 7,5 50
♀ breastfeeding 10 7,5 50

 

* Source: Gezondheidsraad. Voedingsnormen. Calcium, vitamine D, thiamine, riboflavine, niacine, pantotheenzuur en biotine. Publicatie nummer 2000/12.
Rijswijk: Gezondheidsraad; 2000

The impact of obesity on Vitamin D

In addition to diet and exposure to sunlight, obesity also has an effect on the body’s vitamin D levels. Individuals affected by obesity have an increased risk of low vitamin D levels. As a fat–soluble vitamin, vitamin D is stored in fat tissue. When a person has too much fat tissue, their vitamin D is not as available for use throughout the body.

Homeopathic approach

There are no direct homeopathic medicines to treat vitamin deficiency.

However, in this case, a constitutional homeopathic treatment can be made concomitant to the use of vitamin supplements. Homeopathic medicine will be chosen according to the holistic approach of Classical Homeopathy which takes into account all the individual symptoms from the patient and find a specific homeopathic medicine for him.

In this classical form of Homeopathy, each patient is evaluated individually and treated the same way. All the details of patient’s symptoms are noted such as the local sensations, types and locations of pains, the occurrence of symptoms related to weather, time of the day, time of the year etc.

Moreover, in the homeopathic approach great importance and emphasis is given to the individual characteristics of the patient, such as eating patterns, relationship with the climate, sleeping patterns, lifestyle, the history of past diseases of the patient, patterns of disease within the family and relationships.

After collecting all this vital information, a final evaluation is made where only one medication is given to the patient, treating him on a very deep level.

About homeopathic medicines

Homeopathic medicines are obtained from plant extracts, minerals, benign animal products etc. During their preparation, a method that involves serial dilutions of the original material is applied to the original source, yielding to the homeopathic medicine high healing power and leaving it free of toxic effects.

Homeopathic medicines are absolutely free from toxic effects, are harmless and free of side effects.


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