3 ms·
(e) You may not know that ... cancer prevalence depends heavily on vitamin D levels. People living around the equator have a 40-60% lesser chance of getting can
by rogeryu 11y ago
(e) You may not know that ... cancer prevalence depends heavily on vitamin D levels. People living around the equator have a 40-60% lesser chance of getting cancer than people living in the US, Canada or Europe. This is even true for people living in Florida. We don't get enough UV-B from the sun, not like centuries ago when we didn't have to work indoors and didn't use sunscreen. People with dark or darker skin have an even bigger risk.
The risk of getting nonmelanoma skin cancer from UV-B is relatively low, and it's easy to treat. Melanoma skin cancer is dangerous, but not related to sun exposure. Taking vitamin D using pills or getting enough sun exposure (without sunscreen) without getting burnt may be the cheapest and most easy way to reduce cancer risk.
Below some links, these about breast cancer. AFAIK these numbers are similar for other cancers like liver, lung, colon, etc.
http://bigthink.com/devil-in-the-data/vitamin-d-sun-and-cancer http://bigthink.com/devil-in-the-data/vitamin-d-sun-and-canc...
http://articles.latimes.com/2008/may/26/health/he-explain26 http://articles.latimes.com/2008/may/26/health/he-explain26
http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc05/papers/pap1468.pdf http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc05/papers/p...
Or Google that yourself: https://www.google.com/webhp?q=cancer+rates+equator https://www.google.com/webhp?q=cancer+rates+equator
- mikecsh 11y agoSorry, what? Please provide some sources for these claims. As far as I'm aware melanoma is most definitely related to sun exposure and there is no consensus opinion on vitamin-D and cancer prevention, with the most evidence being for it being protective against certain bowel cancers.. Edit: Here's a source for my view: http://www.nhs.uk/livewell/summerhealth/documents/concensus_statement%20_vitd_dec_2010.pdf http://www.nhs.uk/livewell/summerhealth/documents/concensus_... [3rd and 4th bullet points for example]
- rogeryu 11y agoSee my updated comment!
- erkkie 11y agoThere's some data to speculate that chronic non-burning levels of sun exposure is protective against melanoma while acute burning exposure is inductive. Until the data becomes more clear get some sun exposure but do not burn. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2082713/ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2082713/
- rogeryu 11y agoThis is exactly what I mean. Burning is not good, never. It damages the skin and that can cause cancer. Getting 1 MED of sun / UVB a week is however OK it seems. What 1 MED is for you depends on where you live, what time of the year it is, and what skintype you have. If you take a sunbath of one hour in New York in July, and the next day your skin if mildly rose but not burnt, than 1 MED = 1 hour of sun for you, under those circumstances. Then you can divide that into two or three parts spread out over the week. So for 1 hour, you can sit in the sun for 20 minutes three times a week. That will give you enough vitamin D without causing nonmelanoma skin cancer. In Mexico the sun is brighter, so that would shorten your 1 MED period. In november in NY the sun is less bright, so that would make it longer and probably even harmless.
- erkkie 11y agoYes, absolutely, also of note is that it's not just only vitamin d that is good for you but nitric oxide related effects as well: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24445737 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24445737 (ted talk about this topic: https://www.ted.com/talks/richard_weller_could_the_sun_be_good_for_your_heart?language=en https://www.ted.com/talks/richard_weller_could_the_sun_be_go...)
- lifeisstillgood 11y agoSeriously? Research please ... Not a challenge, more a desire for more
- rogeryu 11y agoSee my updated comment. I don't have the time to give more links, but you can do that yourself.
- InclinedPlane 11y agoThat's still an open issue, and the direction of causality hasn't been nailed down yet, but it's interesting.