the d3 debate

recently magazines have been recommending people to get at least 10 minutes of unprotected sun each day to fulfill one's vitamin d3 quota for the day. i have also had a few friends report to me that they have had sun damage removed from their bodies. thought none had cancer or pre-cancerous damage it was still quite scary. even if one is hyper neurotic about sun protection and sun exposure one still runs the risk of contracting skin cancer, nonetheless one still must be diligent about protecting one's skin . this is why i find it baffling that women's magazines are recommending sun exposure to meet their vitamin d3 requirement. sun exposure is a way of acquiring vitamin d3 but its not the only way  . one can also take vitamin d3 supplements and they work.
my vitamin d levels were tested a year ago. they were very low. i usually do have at least 10 minutes of  daily unprotected sun accidentally. i often forget to apply sunblock in the mornings as i am rushing to go to work. even if one is diligent about sun protection, most people are not as diligent as they should be. but guess what? unless you are a farmer who is scantily clad you probably still won't get enough sun exposure to provide adequate vitamin d3 levels..if one is a modestly dressed woman how much is exposed to sunlight even if you are outside without sunblock? this of course is where the supplements come in. and folks, vitamin d3 supplements do work. my vitamin d3 levels have gone up.
supplements do raise vitamin d3 levels. be smart about sun exposure and don't rely on it for achieving the proper level of vitamin d3.

sunscreen queen

in the days before sun protection consciousness, when i was fourteen, i got one of the worst sunburns of my young life. the kind that blisters and peels. it was a nightmare. it itched, it hurt, it looked contagious. shortly after i became the sunscreen queen.
though it was a slightly before the days of global sunblock awareness, there still was sunblock and sunscreen. yes, even then. my dad is a pharmacist and he would get tons of sun protection samples. i was the only fourteen year old around slapping on the stuff. at school and at summer camp everyone would mock me. they'd say"dont you want to tan" and of course id say" no, i just dont want to burn." and i would also say, " trust me, i will still tan, i just wont burn. "
and so it would go. i went women's day at the separate beach in tel aviv and put on tons of sunblock. my friends donned baby oil. they couldnt believe i wanted to block the sun. i said my mantra" trust me, i will still tan, i just wont burn." and burn they did. i had a slight tan. they were scratching their sunburns. i was not.
what really strengthened my resolve to wear sunblock was something that happened to my friend leora. leora fell asleep on the beach. when she got home her body was burnt and swollen. it was scary looking. it looked quite painful and worthwhile to avoid such an experience.
my mom, who is not as fair skinned as i am shuns the sun as well. she doesnt want wrinkles.
though skin cancer may be more prevalent amongst fair skinned snow whites, darker complected individuals need to be careful of the sun. when they have skin cancer sometimes it is only caught in the later stages because it was harder to see on their skin.
in short, we all need to be careful to wear sun block, and wear protective clothing. this is where ultra tznius clothing come in handy...
my favorite sunblocks are clinique spf 50 and neutragena heathy defense daily moisturizer with heliplex spf 45. neutragena has several higher spfs but i find them a little too chalky.
its also important to wear sunglasses in the sun because doing so can prevent cataracts.
go ahead, become a sun shunner like me. you will still have fun in the sun, just fewer sunburns , wrinkles and age spots.