Healthy amounts of exposure to sunlight have always been credited with several health benefits, including boosting the body’s vitamin D supply. But did you know that sunlight exposure can also extend your lifespan?
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In a new video shared by Andrew Huberman, PhD, professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology and host of the Huberman Lab podcast, Dr Roger Seheult, quadruple board-certified MD, pulmonologist and sleep medicine expert, shared incredible data linking the amount of sunlight exposure and lifespan.
Can sunlight exposure increase your lifespan?
In the video, captioned, “Sunlight exposure extends lifespan”, Dr Seheult shared the insights from a 20-year-old study conducted in Sweden that divided 29,518 women into three groups: “those that avoided the sun, those that got moderate sun exposure, and those that got a lot of sun exposure.”
The researchers found that women who were out in the sun not only had lower all-cause mortality, but they also had lower cardiovascular mortality. “What’s really interesting is that they had lower cancer mortality, and it was in a dose-response curve, which suggests Bradford Hill criteria that there was maybe some causation here,” Dr Seheult said.
Smoking and sunlight exposure
Another interesting finding from the study was when they looked at smoking and sun exposure, they found surprising insights. “What was really interesting about that study is that they looked at smoking. So what was the difference here? It was actually such a large difference; that the sunlight exposure made that they were able to show that those women in Sweden who were in the study who went out into the sun avidly and smoked had the same mortality as those women who avoided the sun and didn’t smoke,” Dr Seheult explained.
However, the findings were not limited to just one study. That same study was repeated by the University of Edinburgh, which conducted a Biobank study with 10 times the number of participants, totalling 400,000. The results showed exactly the same findings for both men and women.
Sunlight exposure helps but in healthy amounts
Sharing the video on Instagram, Andrew Huberman wrote in the caption that sunlight exposure helps, but one should not get a sunburn because of it. There’s also the risk of skin cancer.
Huberman explained, “Data linking duration of sunlight exposure each day and lifespan are remarkable. Of course, we have to take activity level levels into consideration, too etc. But the direct effects of sunlight on cellular and organ health are now understood to relate at least in part to the ability for a long wavelength light – (meaning the components of sunlight that you can’t see that reside within the infrared portion of the spectrum), penetrating deep into our body through our skin and improving mitochondrial function.”
He suggested getting outside in sunlight for at least 30 minutes twice a day if you can, especially on overcast days. “If you’re concerned about ultraviolet exposure, know that the UV index is much lower when the sun is low in the sky, such as at the beginning and end of the day. You can check the UV index easily online as well,” he added.
Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.
