3 Reasons Sunlight is An Antidepressant
AND WHAT YOU CAN DO ABOUT A LACK OF IT DURING WINTER
With winter just around the corner, and the days getting shorter, it’s time to gather as much sunlight as we can. During the winter months, it’s estimated that around 10 million Americans suffer from SAD (seasonal effective disorder) as a response to a lack of sun. Depression and anxiety that weren’t necessarily present during summer and early fall months, are now much more common amongst these individuals. But why is this and what can we do about it? Here are 3 reasons why sunlight is an antidepressant.
- SUNLIGHT GIVES OFF UVB RAYS
There are three different kinds of UV rays that come from the sun and yes, you guessed them: UVA, UVB, UVC. But the one that we are interested in is UVB.
UVB rays are stronger than UVA (the two that reach the ground) as opposed to UVC. You’ve probably heard “UVB” in the same sentence with “sunburns and skin cancer”, and for understandable reasons; it’s what causes them. So don’t forget to lather up on your sunscreen!
However, in order to get the vitamin D benefits of UVB, it’s only necessary to stay out for ten to twenty minutes.
When UVB hits the skin, the skin absorbs it and converts it to previtamin D3 (precursor to vitamin D3) with the help of cholesterol. Once the previtamin D3 is converted to D3, tryptophan (precursor to serotonin) is activated. When levels of D3 are low, brain serotonin synthesis is not great.
2. RETINAS AND SEROTONIN
Did you know that your eyes are actually part of your brain? This is a pretty amazing piece of knowledge that I grabbed from Dr. Eric Berg. Check the full video out. I believe Dr. Andrew Huberman out of Stanford goes way into detail about the physiological process, but essentially when light hits certain areas in the back of the retina, it triggers the brain into producing serotonin.
Now, clearly the sun can be very harmful to your eyes as well, so don’t go staring directly at it! All you really need is to be outside in the sun and looking in the general direction of it, can be beneficial as well.
3. ENDORPHINS
Endorphins are our natural painkillers and anti-inflammatory hormones. When sunlight hits our skin, melanocytes (cells that cause the dark pigmentation in the skin) are responsible for releasing endorphins into the bloodstream.
f I pay attention enough when I’m outside, their’s a point where I definitely feel my brain chemistry and thus mood, change. It can sometimes take five minutes, other times fifteen or twenty. Sometimes I stay outside for hours, soaking it all in.
WHAT YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT DURING THE WINTER
- Take a vitamin D supplement. I personally like vitamin D gummies. Also make sure to drink milk (if you aren’t lactose intolerant) and any other dairy products, as they are a great source of vitamin D.
- If you have a room that gets a lot of good natural sunlight, even when its cold outside, the sunlight inside can still be very comforting. There is a debate whether certain sun rays can come through glass or not, but the sun still helps, trust me. If you have a greenhouse or a sunroom, lucky you! Head out there!
- Light therapy lamp. Head on over to amazon and buy yourself a light therapy lamp. Now, I’ve never personally used one, but I’ve heard they help. In Antartica at the base on the South Pole, they have a specific room for light therapy, as they go a full six months without any sunlight.
- Exercise. Yeah, I’m sure you’ve heard it a million times so I won’t bug you more about it, but exercise can absolutely help in boosting both serotonin and dopamine.
- Listen to this serotonin release music outside. It will make you very happy :).
I hope that this helps and if you haven’t already, check out…
My Cervical Vertigo And Panic Disorder Story (Chapter 1)
“Keep your face always towards the sunshine — and shadows will fall behind you.”— Walt Whitman