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Do you suspect you get a lot of psychological benefits from these habits, or something more than vitamin D supplements would provide? https://www.yalemedicine.

by hoten 4y ago

Do you suspect you get a lot of psychological benefits from these habits, or something more than vitamin D supplements would provide? https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/vitamin-d-myths-debunked https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/vitamin-d-myths-debunked

marvin 4y ago
Well, separating placebo effects from real physiological effects and tracing the latter to the source isn't something I've put much thought into. This feels like it works, and that's good enough for me. But there might be something to what you're pointing at, yes. The seasonal depression itself feels pretty distinct. I've been "normal" depressed before, and this is more like a "turned down the dimmer switch on the consciousness" combined with the regular suspects like lower initiative, less joy from fun things, muted feelings and so on. And my subjective experience is it responds well to light and general self-care, to a greater degree than the "standard" variety does. But who knows!
runnerup 4y ago
I’m from Michigan and I developed the same coping mechanism. The benefits were profound, immediate, and lasted 12-48 hours. I found it to be significantly more beneficial than vitamin D supplements. I could replicate some degree of the benefit from a halogen lamp which supposedly has a coating on the glass that blocks the UV, so it’s probably not just Vitamin D. I’m sure vitamin D had some role in it though. But it needs to be an extremely bright light, and broad spectrum. LEDs / fluorescents couldn’t replicate the effects of “facing the sun”, only extremely high wattage halogens. It kind of worked for me on cloudy days depending on the degree of overcast occlusion but I would drop ANYTHING I was doing whenever the sun was shining enough to create crisp shadows. This became a ritual of my “personal religion”.
rl3 4y ago
Came here to link that source myself, so I'll just emphasize an important part: >Is it best to get your vitamin D from the sun? Definitely not! —David J. Leffell, MD, Yale Medicine dermatologist and chief of Dermatologic Surgery That whole section is worth reading. Light may be useful in a Circadian context, but from strictly a Vitamin D point of view you're better off with a diet rich in Vitamin D, or supplementation. Unsurprisingly wild-caught salmon and pasture-raised chicken eggs yield higher Vitamin D content, but supplementation also works. If you're vegan and deprived of sunlight, then supplementation might your only viable option.

by hoten 4y ago

marvin 4y ago

Well, separating placebo effects from real physiological effects and tracing the latter to the source isn't something I've put much thought into. This feels like it works, and that's good enough for me. But there might be something to what you're pointing at, yes. The seasonal depression itself feels pretty distinct. I've been "normal" depressed before, and this is more like a "turned down the dimmer switch on the consciousness" combined with the regular suspects like lower initiative, less joy from fun things, muted feelings and so on. And my subjective experience is it responds well to light and general self-care, to a greater degree than the "standard" variety does. But who knows!

runnerup 4y ago

I’m from Michigan and I developed the same coping mechanism. The benefits were profound, immediate, and lasted 12-48 hours. I found it to be significantly more beneficial than vitamin D supplements. I could replicate some degree of the benefit from a halogen lamp which supposedly has a coating on the glass that blocks the UV, so it’s probably not just Vitamin D. I’m sure vitamin D had some role in it though. But it needs to be an extremely bright light, and broad spectrum. LEDs / fluorescents couldn’t replicate the effects of “facing the sun”, only extremely high wattage halogens. It kind of worked for me on cloudy days depending on the degree of overcast occlusion but I would drop ANYTHING I was doing whenever the sun was shining enough to create crisp shadows. This became a ritual of my “personal religion”.

rl3 4y ago

Came here to link that source myself, so I'll just emphasize an important part: >Is it best to get your vitamin D from the sun? Definitely not! —David J. Leffell, MD, Yale Medicine dermatologist and chief of Dermatologic Surgery That whole section is worth reading. Light may be useful in a Circadian context, but from strictly a Vitamin D point of view you're better off with a diet rich in Vitamin D, or supplementation. Unsurprisingly wild-caught salmon and pasture-raised chicken eggs yield higher Vitamin D content, but supplementation also works. If you're vegan and deprived of sunlight, then supplementation might your only viable option.