How to make up for the lack of sun for the body. What does lack of sunlight lead to? Your negligent attitude towards sunbathing leads to depression

Let's look at how lack of sunshine affects our health in this article.

1. Not only excess, but also lack of sunlight is associated with the development of some forms of cancer.

Lack of vitamin D leads to the development of prostate and breast cancer and increases the risk of dementia and schizophrenia.

2. Not getting enough sunlight is as bad for your heart as eating too many cheeseburgers.

Research has shown that vitamin D deficiency caused by insufficiency sunlight, doubles the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases in men.

3. Your negligent attitude towards sunbathing leads to depression.

The less sun you get during the winter months, the higher your risk of developing seasonal depression. Manifestations of the disease can be very intense: mood swings, anxiety, sleep problems and even suicidal thoughts.

4. Women have a 200% higher risk of developing seasonal depression than men.

It is also important to remember that middle age, When seasonal depression diagnosed for the first time – 18-30 years. But in people over 60 years of age, seasonal depression almost never occurs.

5. For those who like to surf the Internet at night, scrolling through the news feed on social networks, it’s time to take care of their health.

If you like to include your electronic devices before going to bed in the dark, be careful, because the radiation that comes from them confuses our circadian rhythms (« internal clock» of the body), leading to sleep problems and even insomnia.

6. The more time you sleep, the higher your resistance to the flu.

You'll have to pay high price for preferring the computer to sleep. How much sleep you get affects your immune system and your body's ability to recover from past diseases.

7. Lack of sunlight affects your child's vision.

Do you want your child to have sharp vision, and he could distinguish inscriptions in the distance? It turns out that children who spend more time in the sun have a reduced risk of developing myopia. So instead of playing video games, send your child to play outside.

8. Night vigils and night shift work significantly undermine your health.

A link has been found between a tendency to work under artificial light and the occurrence of breast cancer, prostate cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and obesity.

9. Sunbathing can prevent the development of obesity.

In addition to vitamin D, sunlight supplies the body with nitric oxide (NO). It is he who regulates the most important physiological processes, including metabolism. Therefore, sufficient insolation will provide you with ideal metabolism and prevent overeating.

The sun hasn't shown up for days, and there's no snow yet... How to cope with the blues caused by lack of light?

Why do I always want to sleep

What is the autumn blues? own experience many residents of our middle zone, especially in megacities. Everything around is gray, there is nothing for the eye to catch on, the pressure is low, ...

Under conditions of sun deficiency in the body, the production of the “sleep hormone” melatonin increases, and the “joy hormone” serotonin decreases. Hence fatigue, drowsiness, mood swings. I don’t want to do anything - neither work, nor have fun, nor go for a walk...

Read on the website:

Meanwhile, even in cloudy weather, this is a great way to get yourself back to normal. In an hour in the open air you will reach daily norm ultraviolet. So make it a rule walk every day during the day , even if you only have half an hour during your lunch break.

Try at home don't save on electricity – turn on the light wherever you can, it helps to survive the “dark” time.

Light the candles – “living” light has a magical effect on your mood.

Add color to life – put oranges on the bedside table, drink tea from bright cups, forget about gray and black – wear clothes in red, orange, yellow and green.

The next point in the antidepressant program is food. To increase serotonin production, eat foods containing unsaturated omega 3 fatty acids . This sea fish and seafood, olive and flaxseed oil.

sea fish , among other things, is an excellent source of vitamin D. When daylight hours are short, this vitamin is not produced in the body in sufficient quantities.

If you have no strength at all and your blood pressure has dropped, drink tinctures of lemongrass, ginseng, zamanikha .

If you love coffee, then it will help you cheer up - most importantly, choose natural, not freeze-dried.

For those who prefer tea, we recommend add ginger and lemon to the cup . If you have difficulty waking up in the morning, pour some tonic tea into a thermos and place it next to your bed - you can drink a mug as soon as you wake up.

What to eat Bad mood

When we are in a bad mood, we usually want to treat ourselves to something sweet and fatty. However, endless buns, cakes and chocolates are extra calories that we don’t need. To be in a good mood and not gain weight, we need balanced menu. Eat every day:

A piece of meat or fish (preferably sea), cheese(no more than 70 g), plate or lentils . This great sources protein necessary for normal operation immune system substances.

Completely disproportionate fears of skin cancer and predominantly sedentary image Living indoors means that most healthy, well-nourished people don't get enough sunlight. Unfortunately, modern urban population spends a lot of time, including leisure, within four walls, and this leads to an increase in vitamin O deficiency. The problem is especially acute in high southern and northern latitudes, where the sun in the sky is always perceived as a gift. But even in sunny Australia, many people are deficient in sunlight, which prevents their skin from producing enough vitamin B.

It is an indisputable fact that we need sunlight. Most vitamin E - 75 to 90% - is produced through skin exposure ultraviolet rays type B (UVB). Just 15 minutes a few times a week can trigger the synthesis of vitamin D, a compound that is more like a hormone than a vitamin. Without sufficient exposure to sunlight, there is a risk of vitamin D deficiency, which can lead to rickets, osteomalacia (softening of the bones) and osteoporosis (loss of bone mass).

Importance of Vitamin D

Recent research has confirmed that vitamin D and sunlight are important for more than just bone health. Apparently they play a role in early stages development of schizophrenia (due to the influence of low intrauterine vitamin D levels on developing brain). Many body tissues have vitamin D receptors. Active form vitamin D (colecalciferol) also appears to play an important protective role against the origin, development and spread various types tumors.

Specifically, vitamin D deficiency can trigger the development of prostate, breast and colon cancer, as well as a number of other immune disorders such as diabetes mellitus and multiple sclerosis.

Predominance of children diabetes mellitus kind of grows with increasing geographical latitude and decreases with sufficient intake of vitamin D in childhood. Also, with increasing latitude there is gradual increase frequencies multiple sclerosis. This is true for both high northern latitudes and high southern latitudes. For example, in Australia, the correlation between annual average ultraviolet radiation levels and the incidence of multiple sclerosis is stronger than in the case of malignant melanoma. A large body of evidence confirms that ultraviolet light stimulates the production of vitamin D, which is believed to protect against multiple sclerosis. Other explanations boil down to the idea that ultraviolet radiation affects certain parts of the immune system, suppressing autoimmune activity.

The sun and skin cancer

Of course, it is very easy to deduce a direct connection between solar ultraviolet radiation and skin cancer. Less obvious (so almost ignored) is that the sun prevents other types of cancer. According to a recent review, reasonable exposure to sunlight is highly likely to prevent death from various oncological diseases- from cancer reproductive system to the digestive.

Application sunscreens greatly reduces the skin's production of vitamin E3. Because of this, Dr. Gordon Einsleich of California believes that the use of barrier creams actually causes cancer rather than prevents it. His work suggests that the 17% increase in breast cancer rates observed in the United States in 1991-1992 may be the result of widespread sunscreen use over the past decade.

Skin cancer kills approximately 10,000 people a year in the United States. However, some studies show that every year the number premature deaths from cancer associated with too little exposure to sunlight (breast cancer, prostate glands and colon), twice this figure or even more.

One study found that insufficient exposure to ultraviolet B rays kills 21,700 people a year. Dr. Einsleich believes that the actual numbers are even higher than estimates, and that approximately 30,000 cancer deaths per year in the United States could be avoided if people introduced regular, moderate sun exposure into their lifestyles.

Everything needs moderation

The problem will be resolved by our adoption of the concept of the relative degree of risk of a disease. Most people fail to understand how large the gap is between reasonable sun exposure needed for health and doses that cause skin cancer or eye damage. For example, for people with relatively fair skin living in Boston, to maintain adequate vitamin E levels, only 6-10% of their body surface (face, arms, hands) should be exposed to the sun in the spring, summer and fall on a sunny afternoon for 5 minutes twice a day. or three times a week. And for some people living in the more temperate areas of Western Australia, 14 hours of sun exposure each week may be enough to cause basal cell carcinoma (this form of skin cancer has a number of deaths higher than everyone else).

Short daylight hours, vitamin C deficiency and lack of sunlight cannot but affect the well-being and condition of the body during the period winter cold. Scientists believe that, first of all, such conditions influence changes hormonal levels.

This occurs due to insufficient production of such important hormone-like substances V human body, like dopamine (the wakefulness hormone) and melatonin (the sleep hormone).

The problem is that if there is not enough sun for long period Over time, an incorrect ratio of these hormones may occur: Usually in winter, melatonin is produced in large quantities, while dopamine in the body is critically lacking.

This fact largely explains the reason drowsy state most people during the winter months. Activity decreases significantly, sleep problems appear, and with a lack of sun, health and general condition. People begin to get tired faster, experience apathy and depressed mood, which are often accompanied by poor performance.

In addition, as researchers suggest, lack of sun has an adverse effect not only on hormonal levels, but also on many other systems of the body. First of all, short daylight hours affect:

internal biorhythms;
natural skin renewal processes;
immunity;
vitamin D production processes that cannot function normally when there is a lack of sunlight;
endocrine system;
cardiovascular system;
reproductive function.

Who suffers most from sun deficiency?

Feeling unwell in winter period associated with hormonal changes and lack of sunlight, is most often observed in the following groups patients:

elderly people;
children and adolescents;
patients suffering from chronic insomnia;
women of different ages.

Statistics show that the female population suffers more from lack of sun than men. Increased melatonin production and deficit state hormone of wakefulness in the body also affects sexual female hormones, so women very often encounter such unpleasant symptoms in the winter season, like:

frequent dizziness;
headaches and migraines;
fatigue for no reason;
constant state of drowsiness;
increased appetite;
depressed psychological state;
tendency to an apathetic state;
reduced performance;
gaining excess weight.

How to deal with lack of sun?

Scientists advise not to despair and to seriously engage in overcoming this problem, under no circumstances succumbing to an apathetic state. To do this, they suggest following the following simple rules, which can help restore the body, even if the lack of sun has been observed for quite a long time:

Competent organization of the regime. It is necessary to go to bed and wake up at the same time every time so that the body can get used to it and no longer experience the feeling of lack of sleep. Experts advise going to bed 1-2 hours before 12 o'clock at night.
Proper morning rise. To make getting up in the morning much easier, you can use Eleutherococcus, Schisandra or Aralia, taking them in the morning on an empty stomach. Also, during the winter season, if there is a lack of sun, it is recommended to take drugs instead of coffee that can regulate the balance of melatonin and dopamine in the body. So, for example, drug "Melaxen" helps not only to gradually improve general health, but also a psychological state.
Searching for sunlight. Try as soon as possible to spend as much time as possible on fresh air under the sun as soon as it comes out. Some experts are convinced that the lack of sunshine can easily be overcome by traveling to warm countries during winter. You can also sign up for phototherapy procedures, which will also help temporarily replace natural sunlight. For this, special white light lamps are used.
Improved mood and increased activity. Herbal preparations , which include St. John's wort, have a beneficial effect on nervous system and have an antidepressant effect.

We should not forget about taking additional vitamins if there is a lack of sunlight. In autumn and winter, vitamin deficiency is especially common in many patients. Revitalize your diet by focusing on orange fruits and red and orange vegetables.

Judging by latest research, it becomes clear that a lack of sun allows people to suffer from depression much more often. In addition, the lack of sunlight not only directly affects the human psyche, but also the general physical condition.

Autumn and winter - short days

Yes, it is in winter and autumn that people most often do not receive sufficient quantity sun rays. The days are getting shorter, the sun is no longer shining as brightly as in summer, so during this period you want to sleep more, your productivity decreases and your mood is no longer as bright.

Vitamin D

If a person does not have enough sunlight, then the process of producing vitamin D in his body slows down. After all, it is this that allows calcium and phosphorus to be absorbed faster. As a result, immunity decreases, bad mood and irritability appear. Based on this, a person must look for an additional source of sun to compensate for losses.

Sunny days are the key to health

For wellness It’s enough to show up at least once a week sun rays. Even the most busy people can afford it. You don't have to go far! You can just approach open window and put your hands and face towards the sun. Don't miss sunny days!

Foods with vitamin D

You can replenish the balance of vitamin D in the body with the help of certain products. This element is found in fatty fish (salmon meat, sole, etc.). Fish contains large number unsaturated fatty acids, which reduce inflammatory processes in the body and allow the heart to work in the correct rhythm.

Serotonin - the hormone of joy

Surely many people know that during the adoption sunbathing, the human body produces serotonin. This is the substance that is responsible for good mood. It can be obtained from certain products: dark chocolate, apples, bananas, pineapples, plums, etc. But you don’t need to rely heavily on chocolate; it’s better to give preference to fruits, since they also contain vitamins.