It's a time of balance between light and dark. The days are gradually getting cooler and the sun has shone less brightly over the south of England for the last couple of days.
Autumn is definitely here!
The sun has many wonderful benefits, so being out in it and amongst nature supports our health in immeasurable ways and we can certainly enjoy some beautiful, sunny days in Autumn and winter. Among the most well known benefits of the sun, is our body’s ability to synthesise vitamin D from the UV rays on our skin. But it's not quite as simple of getting out on a sunny day during these cooler months.
Hopefully, like me, you will be supplementing with Vitamin D throughout the winter months but here’s why you might want to think about starting with that vitamin D supplement a little sooner.
It’s all in the angle
And that angle is 50° or higher to be precise. This refers to the angle at which the sun sits in the sky above the horizon. In order for us synthesise vitamin D, it’s crucial that the UVB rays reach us through the atmosphere and this only occurs when the sun is at an angle of at least 50°. In the UK this generally occurs between 10.30am and 3.30pm from May to late August, but it’s important to know it’s not for the entire 5 hour duration in the earlier months and latter months.
So, how can we know when the sun is at an optimal angle for us to effectively synthesise this pro hormone? Well, luckily you don’t need to do a daily calculation, you just need to look at your shadow!
As a general rule of thumb, if your shadow is shorter than you (or indeed any object) then you should be able to synthesise vitamin D (cloud cover and pollution will of course affect this somewhat). If your shadow exceeds your height, then there is significantly less UVB in the sun's rays, a greater amount of the more damaging UVA rays and vitamin D will not be synthesised.⠀
Here’s a handy diagram to help you visualise this:
The importance of vitamin D
Covid-19 certainly raised awareness of this vitamin (which is technically not a vitamin, but a pro hormone) and has seen more people opt for a supplement, but it doesn’t hurt to be reminded of its crucial role in supporting our immune system and skeletal health as well as modulating cell growth and glucose metabolism.
Low vitamin D levels are linked to many diseases (believe it or not, skin cancer is amongst them) and if you suspect you are deficient it’s worth getting your levels checked. Some of the symptoms of a deficiency to look out for are:
- Fatigue
- Bone pain
- Muscle weakness, muscle aches, or muscle cramps
- Mood changes and depression
- Recurring infections
- Hair loss
- Hypertension
So whether you’re experiencing these symptoms or not, ensure your levels remain optimal by keeping up with that daily supplement for now and keep an eye on your shadow length from around May to ensure you’re maximising those UVB rays in the summer months.
This article also talks about the importance of vitamin K2 and why for the sake of your bone and cardiovascular health, you should always opt for a formula that contains the combination of both D3 and K2 - even better if it's held only in Organic Black Seed oil.
And finally, don't forget about this mineral, which is essential for the activation of Vitamin D!
