Princhester:
Nonsense. One dermatologist has an outlier view, while the whole field of oncologists and dermatologists (other than him) say the opposite.
And as the cites you have been given on the rickets issue show, the recent increase in Australia is a consequence of other factors. Indeed, it could be nothing else, given that you can get enough vitamin D from a few minutes a day of sun exposure, and no one takes sun protection so seriously that they totally cover up for incidental sun exposure on a day to day basis. Heck, I’d get more sun exposure every day going from my house to my garage in the morning, and in going to buy a sandwich at lunchtime, than a Norwegian would get for six months of the year at a time. And Norwegians don’t have a rickets outbreak.
Your friend is just plain wrong. Such facts as he has right are outliers or irrelevant and don’t mean what he thinks they mean. Don’t fall into the Fox News habit of thinking that because you can always find some crazy with an opposite view, it means there is a real controversy.
OK, putting aside the craziness for a minute, and asking a serious question: exactly how much sun exposure is necessary to get the required daily amount of Vitamin D?
I assume that there has been a study done which has quantified all the parameters which define the required sun exposure that is necessary to get the required amount of Vitamin D?
I can see that there are a whole host of parameters which would have relevance: exposed skin surface area, depth of existing tan, latitude, season, time of day, level of overcast, etc etc.
Does anyone have a cite for this? Sounds like it could be quite interesting.
I believe 20 minutes a day of sunlight is all that’s required to maintain healthy Vitamin D levels.
None of what you mention has any relevance. It’s all about exposure to the light. Nothing to do with a tan.
It’s in a cite that 6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast gave earlier :
Most people probably achieve adequate vitamin D levels through the UVB exposure they receive during typical day-to-day outdoor activities. For example, it has been estimated that fair skinned people can achieve adequate vitamin D levels (>50 nmol/L) in summer by exposing the face, arms and hands or the equivalent area of skin to a few minutes of sunlight on either side of the peak UV periods on most days of the week. In winter, in the southern regions of Australia where UV radiation levels are less intense, maintenance of vitamin D levels may require 2-3 hours of sunlight exposure to the face, arms and hands or equivalent area of skin over a week.
Shakester:
I’m Australian, there are others in this thread. Everything he says is bullshit.
While we don’t have anywhere near the the same amount of conspiracy-theorist nutters that the US does, obviously we do have some.
Believe me, we have plenty. They are known as disciples of Alan Jones . Tragically, I am related to one of these people.
Ahhh…! Thanks, I missed that the first time through.