Premium
Is casual exposure to summer sunlight effective at maintaining adequate vitamin D status?
Author(s) -
Diffey Brian L.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
photodermatology, photoimmunology and photomedicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.736
H-Index - 60
eISSN - 1600-0781
pISSN - 0905-4383
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0781.2010.00518.x
Subject(s) - sunlight , sun exposure , casual , vitamin d and neurology , context (archaeology) , medicine , ultraviolet radiation , environmental health , biology , dermatology , chemistry , physics , political science , optics , paleontology , law , radiochemistry
Background/purpose: The advice that an adequate vitamin D status can be achieved by short, casual exposure to summer sunlight is ubiquitous. This review will examine the value of this advice. Methods: The results of experimental studies on changes in serum 25‐hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] concentrations following ultraviolet exposure are interpreted in the context of human exposure to sunlight. Results: It is shown that current advice about modest sun exposure during the summer months does little in the way of boosting overall 25(OH)D levels, while sufficient sun exposure that could achieve a worthwhile benefit would compromise skin health. Conclusions: Failure to understand the nature of human exposure to sunlight has led to misguided advice concerning the sun exposure necessary for an adequate vitamin D status.