Many people know that the mid-day sun exposure stimulates Vitamin D production which is critical for overall health and wellness. However, most people are not aware that the other portions of the sun’s energy spectrum are also critical for robust health and wellness!
There are
four key practices to harness the tremendous benefits of the sun:
Go outside as
soon as possible after waking up to expose your eyes to the high levels of blue
light from the sun.
Get adequate
Mid-Day Sun exposure on as much skin as possible to optimize Vitamin D
production.
Get adequate
morning and late afternoon sun exposure to expose your body, eyes and brain to
the highest levels of Near Infrared Rays from the Sun.
Minimize
light exposure and particularly blue light exposure in the evening
Waking
Sun Exposure and Circadian Rhythm and Sleep Quality
Many people
are aware that evening and night light exposure can really hurt your sleep. However, what most
people do not know is that early morning sunlight/blue light exposure is just
as important to setting your body’s circadian rhythm and getting a good night’s
sleep!
Human beings
have been on the earth for hundreds of thousands of years and until very
recently we got early morning sun exposure every single day as soon as we woke
up. The sun emits high quantities of
blue light.
The key to
setting our daily rhythm is high levels of bright blue light in the morning and
low to no levels of blue light in the evening and before bed!
Indoor
lights do not pack nearly the punch of outdoor sunlight – even on an overcast
day. Brightness levels are measured in
“lux”, and on a bright sunny day the outdoor lux levels are over 100,000
lux! You may also see the term “lumens”,
and 1 lux = 1 lumen per square meter so they can be used somewhat interchangeably.
Even on a very overcast day outdoor
light levels are close to 2,000 lux. In contrast - the average well-lit home indoor lux levels are somewhere between 100 – 500 lux
so MUCH lower than outdoor sunlight!
Even 5 minutes of exposure to morning sunlight on a bright day is sufficient to help your sleep and energize you in the morning! On overcast days try to get 10 – 15 minutes of outdoor light – you can have your coffee outside!
During winter months it is
well worth considering purchasing a high lux light – needs to be at least
10,000 lux to be effective and there should be zero UV light emitted. Here is an excellent unit: https://www.amazon.com/Carex-Day-Light-Classic-Bright-Therapy/dp/B00PCN4UVU/ref=psdc_13053141_t4_B078KFCN1N
Sunlight
and Vitamin D
Vitamin D is
produced by the UVB rays emitted by the Sun and these levels are highest during
mid-day sun and depending on your skin type, time of year and where you live you
need to spend anywhere from 5 – 30 minutes with plenty of your skin exposed to
achieve the Vitamin D boosting effects.
To learn more about this check out this previous blog post on safe and
effective sun exposure: http://workoutanytime.blogspot.com/2022/05/the-facts-on-safe-sun-exposure-and.html
Morning
and Late Afternoon Sun Exposure
Another
important portion of the Sun’s Spectrum is infrared and near infrared light
(NIR) which we experience as heat. In particular near infrared light has been
proven to provide tremendous health boosting effects. Fortunately – the near infrared portion of
the sun’s rays makes up 40% of the output and near infrared is highest in the
morning and late afternoon.
Whenever you
feel heat from the sun you know you are getting infrared and near infrared
exposure and unlike UV light near infrared cannot damage skin and goes through single
layers of clothing easily. In fact, near infrared can actually penetrate
through the skull into the upper meninges of the brain with some big benefits!
Benefits
of Near Infrared Exposure
There are big
benefits to Near Infrared because NIR directly stimulates increased energy production
from the mitochondria in our cells which are responsible for almost all the
energy in our bodies.
As the
mitochondria increase energy output they also generate melatonin! Melatonin is not just important for stimulating
our sleep cycle – it has many other powerful benefits.
Melatonin has been shown to have
antioxidant and anticancer effects, to play a role in the regulation of blood
pressure and glucose levels, is highly anti-inflammatory, and has also been
shown to lower the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection and mortality.
Melatonin exists in two main forms within the body – circulatory melatonin, which is produced by the pineal gland and has its major effect on sleep and the circadian rhythm, and subcellular melatonin, which is produced and used locally by the mitochondria within our cells.
Sunshine is our major source of infrared and NIR light, but it can also come from exposure to fire (campfire, candle flames, fireplace, etc.) and certain types of light bulbs. Here is a great video showing exactly how this production of melatonin produces its many benefits: https://youtu.be/sNklS0lzlgA
Near Infrared Maximized by Plants
While direct sunlight exposure is
great – you can actually magnify near infrared exposure by walking in and
around plants! Green leaves strongly
reflect NIR – checkout this NIR camera photo to appreciate just how much NIR
plants can give off: http://www.idahoairships.com/idaho-airships-envira-nir-gallery-working-2_19-31/
NIR in Winter
To get the benefits of NIR during
winter months you can use a infrared/near infrared sauna or use a high quality
Near Infrared Bulb. Here is an excellent
example: https://www.amazon.com/TheraBulb-NIR-Near-Infrared-Bulb/dp/B01855YCXM
Minimizing Blue Light Exposure at Night
During the evening and night-time
hours it is critical to reduce overall light exposure and specifically blue
light exposure to allow the Pineal Gland to release melatonin.
Here are some key steps you can take to minimize blue light at night:
Reduce the light levels in your home by
using dimmers or just turning off lights.
Minimize your exposure to TV – particularly in the hour before going to sleep.
Minimize use of your phone and computer
Install a redlight filter like the free Twilight App for your phone and the free flux program on your laptop to reduce blue light output based on time of day so that during evening and night hours you get less blue light exposure!
Replace regular night lights and bedroom bulbs with redlight bulbs – true redlight does NOT interfere with sleep or melatonin release they way Blue Light does. In addition, it does not interrupt night vision. Here is a great product that you can also travel with: https://shoptruelight.com/product/truelight-luna-red-portable-nightlight/
You can also try blue light blocking glasses which are available on Amazon.
Keep your room as dark as possible when sleeping and/or consider buying a comfortable pair of sleeping mask which blocks all light.
Take Home Message
Sun exposure is part of our evolutionary
heritage and you NEED regular sunlight optimize your health and wellness. To see an excellent in depth review of
the research on the concepts mentioned in this blogpost click here: https://youtu.be/5YV_iKnzDRg
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