Nature has blessed the universe with the graced warmth and illumination of the sun. It can relax your soul while basking in its cozy golden rays – a powerful mood stabilizer and an antidote to health. Does it mean the sun contains essential or medicinal components the human body needs? Have you wondered what vitamin comes from the sun? Or is it packed with loads of energetic shots to elevate your well-being? Keep scrolling through this page, as it will answer all such questions.
If you're stuck at the thought of what vitamin comes from the sun, it's none other than vitamin D – scientifically named calciferol and most commonly known as sunshine vitamin.
Comprehensive Overview of Calciferol
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble micronutrient that plays a significant role in maintaining your health status by strengthening your bones, supporting your immune system, sustaining cell growth, and, most importantly, helping calcium absorbed in your body in its target sites.
Naturally, calciferol is classified into two forms – vitamin D2 and vitamin D3, which are ergocalciferol and cholecalciferol, respectively. The typical sources of the former are plant-based foods, such as grains, fruits, and vegetables, while the latter is present in animal-based foods – meat, eggs, and dairy. It is also synthesized in the skin when exposed to ultraviolet B (UVB) sunlight radiation.
In addition, specific multi vitamin for women and men are available to enhance the micronutrient needs that dietary choices might not fulfill.
Natural Interdependence: What Vitamin Comes from the Sun?
Before going into the details of what vitamin is present in the sun, it is necessary to review the essential prerequisites to foster a better understanding to witness the beautiful miracles with which humans are perfectly crafted with blood, flesh, and bones.
As already discussed above, the fascinating relationship between the golden cast of the sun and human skin is the formation of cholecalciferol – triggered by UVB rays.
A molecule named '7-dehydrocholesterol' is present in your skin, which soaks the sun's UVB and stimulates a series of chemical reactions that bring forth the precursor to activate vitamin D. It is then transported to the liver and kidneys, where it is converted into calcitriol – a started form of vitamin D that plays a vital role in several physiological processes of the body.
Click here to read: 'What vitamin deficiency causes you to feel cold?'.
How Much Sun Exposure Do You Need?
People getting inadequate sun exposure commonly include infants, the elderly, disabled persons, people with dark-toned skin or dark complexion, and inhabitants of northern latitudes, especially during the winter. Such individuals are prone to low vitamin D3 production, leading to low bone mineral density and an increased risk of fractures.
The skin of people with age up to or more than 70 years cannot produce adequate amounts of cholecalciferol. As for people with darker skin tones, their skin is enriched with excessive melanin, which hinders the absorption of UVB and its further conversion process. They need more sun exposure than people with moderate or fair complexion.
In addition to less or prolonged exposure to the skin, numerous variables affect the formational process of calciferol in your body, including your age, genetics, skin complexion or pigmentation, the country where you're living, the time of the day when you go out and ongoing weather of the year.
Guidelines for Sun Exposure
Regardless of the importance of sunbathing or thinking about what vitamin comes from the sun, it is essential to strike a wholesome balance between your body type and the time of the day you're going out sunbathing.
As the deficiency and excess of everything are terrible, it is essential to consider the following guidelines so you can make the most from ample amounts of calciferol:
Time Duration
The best time to enrich your skin with maximum UVB rays is when the sun is at its highest in the sky – from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. However, the summer season in many countries makes this time of the day almost unbearable to stay in the sun. Therefore, it is recommended to go out and absorb vitamin D at sunrise or before the sun sets in the west.
Duration
The amount of sun exposure you need depends on many factors, such as your geographic location, the time of the year, and skin tone. Exposure to the sun a few times a week without sunscreen is sufficient to make vitamin D.
Supplementation
Vitamin D supplements, such as Sunrise Vitamin, should be a mandatory part of your routine if factors such as location or lifestyle limit or reduce your sun exposure time.
Final Wrap Up
Concluding the answers to what vitamin comes from the sun, it is evident that calciferol is an essential micronutrient your body needs to perform myriad functions, ranging from cellular health to maintaining complex organ systems and immunity. Surrounded by countless variables that may contribute to limiting your time to soak sunshine vitamins, moderation, responsible choices, and informed decision-making strategies are the ultimate keys to protecting yourself from becoming a victim of chronic diseases.