Why I Don’t Wear Sun Screen

In a previous post, I wrote about why I don’t wear sunglasses. If you read that post, you may have thought I’d gone mad—as they say about the British in India, “mad dogs and Englishmen out in the noonday sun.” In this blog post I will explain why I don’t wear sunscreen and how I safely enjoy full sun exposure.

Story at a Glance

• Your skin is designed to capture sunlight; your body is an electromagnetic system that responds to cues from nature. 
• Exposure of the skin to the sunlight activates skin hormones and helps set your circadian rhythm.
• Sunlight exposure allows red blood cells to function optimally by improving their oxygen carrying capacity.
• Sun exposure may improve gut health and could have a role in supporting brain function, including dementia.
• Sun light is antibacterial.
• While sun exposure can lead to some non-threatening skin cancers, it does not necessarily increase the risk of melanoma.
• Insufficient sun exposure has been linked to an increased risk of certain cancers.

The Power of Light

One beautiful spring day I was out in our community garden and looked up to see a woman, a few rows over, chatting with a friend. She was completely covered from head to toe in long clothing. She wore a hat, gloves, long sleeves, long pants, and closed-toe shoes. I think she even had a mask over her face. I was amazed. I looked down at my clothes—I was wearing a tank-top, shorts, sandals, and no hat. I had roughly 50% of my skin exposed. The sun was warm and bright. I reveled in it! But I could not believe how someone could shun the sun in that manner. (With all due respect, she may have been on a medication that warns you to avoid sun exposure.)

I see people dressed like this all the time. If they are not covered with clothes, they are slathered with sun block. They seem to fear sun exposure. They are so fearful of the sun that they instill that fear in their children. Babies are covered up. Young children are covered in greasy sun screen. This is not what Mother Nature ordered.

Sunlight is an Environmental Queue 

Sunlight isn’t just about getting your vitamin D, although that is a large part of why we need sun exposure. It also includes getting the visible and invisible sun rays directly on your skin to trigger biological pathways. Without getting too deep in the biochemistry, regular sun exposure provides essential near-infrared and ultraviolet light that penetrates tissues and stimulates energy pathways.

The simple act of going out into the sun is more important than you think. Your cells have power houses in them called mitochondria. They respond to light frequencies. According to Dr Alexis Cowan of Princeton University, parts of mitochondria respond to near infra-red frequencies. Near-infrared light is present outdoors during daylight, even when you’re in the shade. Here is the biochemistry-

Ultraviolet light is also critical for biological pathways in the body. Again, according to Dr Alexis Cowan, UVB produces vitamin D but also produces hormones that reduce appetite and stimulate energy production. Ultraviolet light is present outdoors during daylight hours, even in the shade.

Dr. Cowan recommends avoiding direct sunlight during the middle of the day, especially in southern climates. However, other doctors (see below) suggest that midday is actually the best time to be outside, as UV exposure is strongest. Their advice: head indoors or cover up as soon as your skin starts to turn pink—which may occur after only 20 minutes if you are not accustomed to being in the sun! Either way, moderation is key. Aim for bright, full-spectrum light—but avoid burning your skin.

How to Set your Circadian Rhythm

Most of us have heard that melatonin is the sleep hormone—you can even buy it at the health food store. But instead of purchasing it, you can help your body produce it naturally (for free) by simply stepping outside in the daylight. Try to do this early in the morning and allow the sunlight to hit your skin. Avoid wearing sunblock, and expose a significant amount of skin—weather permitting!

When sunlight hits your skin, it signals UV receptors to alert the brain that UV light is present, prompting the body to begin producing and storing melatonin—among other functions. But if melatonin is the sleep hormone, why would your body make melatonin during daylight hours?? It turns out that your body makes melatonin during the daytime in preparation for night time. When darkness falls, your body activates the stored melatonin. You are now ready for sleep. (See my previous blog post here for more information).

Light and Your Red Blood Cells

If you think back to high school science class, you might recall that light from the sun is emitted in the form of packets of energy called photons. These photons are part of visible light, as well as infrared and ultraviolet light. Can these photons of light enter the body? Yes—and scientists can measure very faint levels of UV photons being emitted by red blood cells, a phenomenon first discovered in 1923 by Alexander Gurwitsch.

In fact, our bodies are designed to accept photons of light. As I mentioned in my post on sunglasses—your blood can accept and transmit light in the form of ultraviolet photons. Many capillaries lie close to the surface of the skin and are influenced by sunlight. This is where UVB light helps produce sulfated vitamin D and sulfated cholesterol.

Red blood cells also contain porphyrins, which absorb UV frequencies across the full spectrum of sunlight (Dr Jack Kruse).  Even parts of the eye and brain tissue can accept and emit UV radiation. Why does this happen? It is believed that the mitochondria inside cells use photons for energy production, and that cell division also benefits from this light exposure.

So why would we want to block that natural process? Why would we want to cover our skin and our eyes to stop the “dangerous” rays of UV light?

Heliotherapy

UV light is not dangerous, and this was known by physicians even as far back as the early 1900s—in fact, they believed it was essential. Heliography (sunbathing for medical reasons) was commonly prescribed by physicians to heal certain diseases such as infections, tuberculosis, gout, rheumatoid arthritis, and kidney problems, among others (link). The little boy pictured below was a patient of Dr Auguste Rollier. His healthy tan and healed body is a testament to the sun’s healing powers.

Can your gut benefit from sun exposure?

Yes, it is possible that your gut-biome—located deep within your intestinal track— benefits from sunlight exposure.  Dr William Davis, cardiologist and author of Wheat Belly, has explored this idea. It appears that the infrared (IR) component of sunlight—particularly red light and higher wavelengths—can penetrate deeply into the body, up to a centimeter or more. He states the following-

The diagram below illustrates how deeply different forms of light penetrate the body.

Dr. Davis continues by presenting evidence suggesting that infrared exposure of the abdomen may promote the growth of beneficial bacterial species while reducing harmful ones. And, more amazingly, it might impact our brain health.  In this study (Chen et al 2021) abdominal exposure of mice to 730 nm infrared light reduced the beta-amyloid plaque in their brains. This begs the question—could sunbathing keep our bellies happy and our brains free of dementia? And sunlight is free.

Sunlight is antibacterial and antifungal

The July 1968 issue of Scientific American was entitled “Sunburn” and written by Farrington Daniels, Jr et al. The authors state that basking in the sun confers many benefits beside the synthesis of vitamin D – some that are known and undoubtedly many others that have not yet been explored. The article also points out the effect of sunlight on the skin surface – that it prevents bacterial and fungal infections.

Another study found that UV-A, UV-B (both in sunlight) seem to be effective at slowing the growth of the fungus found in athletes foot. This might prompt you to take your shoes off and go barefoot in the grass! (A topic for another blog post).

What About Cancer?

I know what you are thinking—sunlight exposure means cancer, in particular melanoma. Why would anyone risk getting a deadly disease? But this is one of those instances where the truth is more nuanced that what you often hear in the news or even from some doctors. According to The Forgotten Side of Medicine—”many different studies have shown that sunlight exposure dramatically reduces one’s overall risk of cancer. For example, this large study found that high solar UVB exposure halved the risk of breast and prostate cancer.”

The researchers found: “Women with higher solar UVB exposure in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) had only half the incidence of breast cancer as those with lower solar exposure, whereas men in another national survey who had higher residential solar UVB exposure had only half the incidence rate of fatal prostate cancer.”

Another study involving more than 29,000 women found that those who avoided the sun, had a risk of dying similar to smokers-

But what about melanoma, the deadly form of skin cancer?

If you get consistent sun exposure you may increase your chances of developing a benign form of skin “cancer”. Yes—sun exposure can potentially cause these benign growths, but they are primarily non-threatening and easily treated (ref).

On the other hand, a lack of sunlight is linked to more fatal forms of skin cancer. A significant percentage of melanoma’s are diagnosed in people such as office workers who receive little sunlight on most days, and have low vitamin D levels. These individuals are also exposed to fluorescent lighting, which is under suspicion as a source of cancer. Sometimes these melanomas appear on areas of the body that are typically covered by clothing.     

Of course, dermatologists would have you believe otherwise. According to The Forgotten Side of Medicine, dermatologists often fail to mention that a lack of sunlight can contribute to fatal skin cancers. Their message tends to instill fear of the sun rather than promote a healthy respect for its benefits.

“Despite billions being spent each year on skin cancer, the total death rate from skin cancer has remained almost entirely unchanged—instead, we simply diagnose and “treat” far more of it [which has become a lucrative business].”

How can you begin to safely enjoy sun exposure?”

As early humans we spent a great deal of time in the sun—especially in the cradle of civilization—Mesopotamia, and the Middle East—where the sun was overhead for much of the day. People in those regions developed darker skin to protect against sun burn, while populations in northern areas evolved lighter skin to better absorb the limited sunlight. If you want to increase your sun exposure and have lighter skin, do so gradually, aiming to build tolerance over time. As mentioned earlier, limit your exposure and head indoors when your skin starts to turn pink—which may happen in as little as 20 minutes.

Some people claim that getting a tan is inherently “bad.” For example, Krista Rubin, NP, from the Mass General Cancer Center, told PEOPLE magazine, “There is no such thing as a safe tan. A tan is an injury,” adding, “Repeated sunburns can lead to irreversible DNA damage and immune suppression. These factors can lead to the development of skin cancer.”

However, this statement by Rubin conflates two very different things: a tan and a sunburn. A tan is the body’s natural response to gradual sun exposure—a protective adaptation developed over millennia. Burns, on the other hand, are acute and damaging. Early humans didn’t avoid the sun altogether; they lived and worked outdoors. As the seasons changed from spring to summer, their sun exposure gradually increased, giving their skin time to adapt. Of course, during the hottest parts of the day, they probably sought shade—not to avoid the never-ending work of being a “hunter-gatherer”, but to stay cool—while still maintaining an active outdoor life.

On the other hand, modern humans are often “weekend warriors” charging outside just 2 days a week and succumbing to burns and overexposure. According to the Midwestern Doctor (ref) “the best approach to sunbathing is to do it around noon (as this is when the healthiest UV is present) and stop once your skin starts to show the initial signs of excessive exposure (white skin becomes slightly pink)”.  Doing this every day will gradually build up tolerance.

Sunscreens and Sun blocks

A discussion of sun exposure would not be complete without mentioning sun screen. While I believe sun screen has some value, I think its usefulness is quite limited. If you need to reduce sun exposure, consider wearing long sleeves or a hat instead.

There are concerns that the ingredients in many sun screens have not been fully tested for safety. For example, a 2019 study published in JAMA by Matta et al. found that certain chemical sunscreen ingredients—such as avobenzone, oxybenzone, octocrylene, and ecamsule—were absorbed into the bloodstream at levels exceeding FDA thresholds. This prompted calls for further safety evaluations. It may take years for these studies to be completed. In the mean time…

Yes, you can cover up to avoid excessive sun exposure. The pictures below are of people I saw in Hawaii on a recent trip. I think they take the “cover up” suggestion to an extreme…

Summary

Another beautiful summer day—I was still on vacation—I could see hundreds of people lounging on a fantastic beach. In the distance was Diamond Head. The surf pounded the shoreline. (I’m sure you can guess where I was.) One man spent 20 minutes smearing sunblock on his wife. She spent 20 minutes smearing sunblock on him. Then they sat down to enjoy the beach. A family of four walked by, each covered head to toe in black, long-sleeved clothing. Not a ray of UV light will ever touch their skin. Another woman sprayed sunblock on her legs. The wind carried the overspray down to other unsuspecting bathers. Hmmm…

Me, I sat under a wonderful umbrella in my bathing suit with no sunblock on. Since I had been going out in the sun for weeks getting my body accustomed to sunlight, I had no worries about getting burned.

There is no need to fear the sun and many reasons to enjoy it’s rays. We can’t outsmart Mother Nature.  Not only do we fail to understand her, but she is always one step ahead of us. Be safe.

Always talk to your health professional before starting anything new.  This information is not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any condition and is intended only for entertainment. I welcome your comments.