Looking Good, Feeling Sexy and Preventing Cancer with Sunshine

Spring has arrived, bringing with it warm weather and the urge to get outside and soak up some rays.

Spending time in the sun gives a woman the healthy glow of a nice tan, giving color to her exposed legs and arms that go along with the spring and summer fashions of sandals, skirts and sleeveless tops. Not to mention there is something wildly sexy about showing of your bikini tan lines when naked and romping with your significant other.

And it is not just looking sexy that gives a boost to a woman’s passion, sun exposure is known to increase a woman’s testosterone levels according to Dr. Christiane Northrup, OB/GYN (you may have seen her on Oprah). Ladies it is not just the feel of the warm sun on your bikini bottom and your privates that is getting you all hot and bothered while you bath in the sun and find yourself fantasizing and having sexual thoughts, testosterone is working its magic on your sex drive, making you feel sexy and amorous.  

A sexy tan and a boost in the bedroom are not the only benefits women get from healthy sun exposure. The body uses the ultraviolet rays of the sun to produce natural vitamin D3 in the skin. Getting plenty of vitamin D3 and calcium is especially important for woman for the prevention of bone loss. Not only is vitamin D3 important for a woman’s bones, several studies show getting adequate vitamin D3 strengthens the immune system and reduces the incidence of breast and ovarian cancer by as much as 50 percent. (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/12/051228012407.htm)

To get the immunity boosting and cancer prevention benefits of sun exposure researchers recommend a 15 minute daily dose of unprotected sun exposure (no sun screen or clothing) on a woman’s arms ( sorry, no mention is made of how much sun exposure is needed stimulate the testosterone increase and libido boost).

But what about all the warnings about skin cancer and the need to avoid sun exposure? The American Society for Dermatologic Surgery recommends staying out of the sun year round and using a minimum sun protection factor (SPF) of 30 if you do go out in the sun. The number of cases of skin cancer is on the rise and in the USA.

Most of the more than 1 million cases of non-melanoma skin cancer diagnosed yearly in the United States are considered to be sun-related. In 2007 10,850 deaths were due to skin cancers, both non-melanoma and melanoma types. If we assume roughly half of them were women that amounts to about 5,425 deaths that year.

On the other hand they estimate some 40,000 women in the US will die from breast cancer and another 16,000 from ovarian cancer. Compare this to the 5,400 deaths from skin cancer. And remember the researcher indicates if women were to get adequate vitamin D3, the sunshine vitamin, that rate could be cut in half. Or in other words it is possible that 28,000 women could be saved, just by getting enough vitamin D from adequate sun exposure.

I have used breast and ovarian cancer in this example, and other studies indicate that vitamin D prevents as many as 77 of ALL cancers in women. These include the previously mentioned breast and ovarian cancers and also include cervical cancer, colon cancer; brain cancer, lung cancer, and multiple myeloma just to name a few.

Following the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery recommendations of avoiding the sun in order to prevent cancer in reality increases cancer, studies show.

You can enjoy the sun and all the benefits including a sexy tan and those adorable tan lines, protection from cancers and protect yourself for the damaging effects of over exposure to the sun (sunburn) by consuming plenty of antioxidants. The real cause of sun damage to your skin is not merely over exposure to the Ultraviolet rays of the sun, it is the lack of enough antioxidants in your diet to protect you from possible DNA mutations caused by the UV exposure.

Instead of slathering on some goopy and possibly dangerous sunscreen lotion on your skin, build up your internal sunscreen by eating lots of berries (blueberries, strawberries, etc.) and other antioxidants. Perhaps the fastest and easiest way to get the antioxidants you need to protect you from sun damage to your skin and DNA is to take an astaxanthin supplement.