Sun protects against childhood asthma
Vitamin D, which is primarily absorbed from the sun, plays a role in protection against childhood asthma. Now, a new study led by Valencian researchers has shown that children who live in colder, wetter cities are at greater risk of suffering from this respiratory problem, since there are fewer hours of sunlight in such places.
Um… no. Vitamin D is not some newly discovered emission from the sun which you magically absorb, while you do get some from your diet you synthesize most it of yourself from cholesterol through reactions powered by ultraviolet light (mostly from sunshine) absorbed through the skin (hence “the sunshine vitamin”). This is one of the reasons we don’t support hysterical anti cholesterol and anti sun exposure campaigns.
Too much solar (or tanning bed) UV and you get burned – don’t do that – but you do benefit from some exposure and the absurd “ozone depletion” scare has much to answer for. Similarly, cholesterol, which you also largely produce yourself, is an important precursor compound for the synthesis of other little goodies (like steroids and hormones, for example) that keep your body functioning as it should.
Bottom line? Don’t cook yourself but don’t be afraid of the sun either – a light tan won’t kill you and driving your cholesterol levels through the floor through medication has no demonstrated benefits and simply limits your body’s ability to synthesize other useful/necessary compounds.
Providing support for the mistranslation hypothesis above, the item eventually states:
… In fact, 90% of our vitamin D is synthesised through exposure to the sun. This vitamin, which can be found in various cell receptors, is usually found at lower levels in people with asthma. The study results show that there is a higher prevalence of this illness among children in wetter places with less sun (northern Spain). (EurekAlert)
