There's something I've become increasing aware of 00:00:05.53\00:00:09.40 humanity's intimate relationship with nature. 00:00:09.44\00:00:12.27 It's sad to say, many of us have lost touch with this 00:00:12.31\00:00:15.31 connection. Think about it, our body literally translates 00:00:15.34\00:00:19.21 light rays, sound waves, electrical waves, ions, 00:00:19.25\00:00:22.48 food molecules into us. 00:00:22.52\00:00:24.55 They influence everybody function, become a part of our 00:00:24.59\00:00:28.72 very being John Muir is the great naturalist and explorer 00:00:28.76\00:00:32.36 known for helping Yosemite becoming a National Park. 00:00:32.39\00:00:34.83 He understood this connect between nature and humanity 00:00:34.86\00:00:38.17 and he said, The sun shines not on us but in us. 00:00:38.20\00:00:42.47 John Muir may not have under- stood the science and physiology 00:00:42.50\00:00:45.77 behind his statement he spoke a profound truth, 00:00:45.81\00:00:48.84 we are light catchers. 00:00:48.88\00:00:51.35 I'm reading some of John Muir and his writing is so beautiful 00:01:14.17\00:01:18.51 and poetic, he says... 00:01:18.54\00:01:20.41 Joh Muir was a lover of the wilderness, he was a man who 00:01:37.39\00:01:42.06 became an advocate for conservation of lands in 00:01:42.10\00:01:44.90 the United States, he was significantly involved in the 00:01:44.93\00:01:47.80 establishment of Sequoia National Park in Yosemite. 00:01:47.84\00:01:50.77 You know, I only live an hour from Yosemite and it 00:01:50.81\00:01:52.91 is such a beautiful place. 00:01:52.94\00:01:54.58 There's a waterfall in Yosemite that at the right time 00:01:54.61\00:01:58.08 of the year, the right time of day, 00:01:58.11\00:02:00.28 the sun hits it in such a way the waterfall looks like 00:02:00.32\00:02:03.95 molten fire flowing down the cliff, that's sunshine for you 00:02:03.99\00:02:08.19 makes everything look better. 00:02:08.22\00:02:09.89 But it's also responsible for doing amazing things 00:02:09.92\00:02:13.36 for our health. In fact, if I were to tell you 00:02:13.40\00:02:16.56 that there is a nutrient been found that will slash our risk 00:02:16.60\00:02:19.73 of developing at least sixteen different types of cancer 00:02:19.77\00:02:23.37 including Pancreatic, Lung, Ovarian, Colorectal, 00:02:23.41\00:02:27.38 and Prostate cancers. 00:02:27.41\00:02:28.78 That it would be essential for healthy immune function 00:02:28.81\00:02:31.48 and decrease the risk of autoimmune diseases such as 00:02:31.51\00:02:34.92 multiple sclerosis, it affects our blood pressure, 00:02:34.95\00:02:38.02 and reduces heart disease, stroke, and infectious diseases 00:02:38.05\00:02:41.66 from influenza to tuberculosis, it improves mood, 00:02:41.69\00:02:46.36 prevents dementia, depression, insomnia, muscle weakness, 00:02:46.39\00:02:51.13 joint pain, Fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, 00:02:51.17\00:02:55.10 rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, and psoriasis, 00:02:55.14\00:02:58.71 it helps us sleep better, age better, and is good for the gut. 00:02:58.74\00:03:02.81 We learned in our last episode that deficiency in this nutrient 00:03:02.84\00:03:07.25 resulted in higher the rates of Covid 19, higher hospital 00:03:07.28\00:03:11.72 admissions and that those who were deficient were more likely 00:03:11.75\00:03:15.26 to need ventilators and die of Covid 19. 00:03:15.29\00:03:18.43 You probably wouldn't be able to guess what this can do, 00:03:18.46\00:03:22.26 can't live without it substance would be if I hadn't given 00:03:22.30\00:03:25.33 you the clue, it's sunlight. 00:03:25.37\00:03:27.80 Today we're going to continue our look into the healing power 00:03:27.84\00:03:31.47 of the sun and we're going to start with the question 00:03:31.51\00:03:34.58 does sunshine benefit our mental health? 00:03:34.61\00:03:37.35 It does in a huge way for sure so it helps with our 00:03:37.38\00:03:42.25 circadian rhythm, it helps with Vitamin D production, 00:03:42.28\00:03:46.05 it also helps us directly stimulate mitochondria... 00:03:46.09\00:03:50.79 You know when I think about mental and hormonal health 00:03:50.83\00:03:54.96 I often think of all the neurotransmitters and hormones 00:03:55.00\00:03:58.63 and chemicals that actually function as part of a symphony 00:03:58.67\00:04:03.04 or an orchestra, they need to keep collaborative rhythm 00:04:03.07\00:04:07.14 and sometimes when they get out of sync with each other 00:04:07.18\00:04:09.74 there's dissonance, it doesn't sound so good. 00:04:09.78\00:04:12.55 Light is like the conductor that can bring them back into 00:04:12.58\00:04:16.82 harmony and rhythm. 00:04:16.85\00:04:18.29 I asked Dr. Binas if he thought that was a good analogy. 00:04:18.32\00:04:21.72 I think so and again when we think about that whole harmony 00:04:21.76\00:04:26.86 that takes place, it reminds me of the whole circadian rhythm 00:04:26.90\00:04:29.96 thing because just like with a symphony there needs to be 00:04:30.00\00:04:34.37 a conductor and things taking place at the right time... 00:04:34.40\00:04:37.11 Same thing with the circadian rhythm right? 00:04:37.14\00:04:39.64 Like where you want to have things be released and 00:04:39.67\00:04:44.05 not being released at certain times so that things can work 00:04:44.08\00:04:46.95 in an integrative fashion. 00:04:46.98\00:04:48.78 So he mentioned that sunshine plays a vital role in 00:04:48.82\00:04:53.02 circadian rhythm, Vitamin D, and mitochondria stimulation, 00:04:53.05\00:04:57.66 all topics that we addressed in previous episodes. 00:04:57.69\00:05:00.73 Now as we're about to learn sunshine also helps to support 00:05:00.76\00:05:04.23 balance, brain chemical levels. 00:05:04.27\00:05:06.33 Remember that Sunshine on My Shoulder Makes Me Happy Song 00:05:06.37\00:05:10.54 that we sang years ago? 00:05:10.57\00:05:11.91 Come to find out it's true. 00:05:11.94\00:05:14.88 I would definitely say that sunshine at least on my forehead 00:05:14.91\00:05:20.02 makes me happy. Again, because of the infrared penetration 00:05:20.05\00:05:28.09 into your brain that really is going to stimulate 00:05:28.12\00:05:31.39 your frontal lobe and your whole cerebral cortex 00:05:31.43\00:05:33.29 which in turn can really elevate your mood states and 00:05:33.33\00:05:37.10 certainly there is also the tie- in with Vitamin D, serotonin, 00:05:37.13\00:05:44.44 melatonin, and so even in order to get adequate secretion 00:05:44.47\00:05:50.21 production of serotonin, we need to have Vitamin D 00:05:50.25\00:05:53.55 and we need to have sunlight exposure. 00:05:53.58\00:05:55.88 Sunshine causes us to produce serotonin in our brains 00:05:55.92\00:06:01.59 and as you know serotonin is necessary for our moods 00:06:01.62\00:06:06.43 and when we become low in serotonin, we can develop 00:06:06.46\00:06:08.96 depression, we can develop anxiety. 00:06:09.00\00:06:11.30 So serotonin is what we call the feel-good hormone 00:06:11.33\00:06:15.74 and so it's a neurotransmitter that our brain cells use to 00:06:15.77\00:06:19.84 help with communication and it helps us to feel calm, 00:06:19.87\00:06:23.75 to have a positive mood and not to feel anxious, 00:06:23.78\00:06:27.38 but overall a positive sense of wellbeing. 00:06:27.42\00:06:30.99 And then melatonin of course is really important for inducing 00:06:31.02\00:06:34.22 sleep and actually melatonin is produced from serotonin. 00:06:34.26\00:06:38.03 We're not even 10 minutes into this thing and we're learning 00:06:38.06\00:06:41.20 so much, sunlight shining through the eyes and on the skin 00:06:41.23\00:06:45.60 have been found to influence serotonin production. 00:06:45.63\00:06:48.57 Our body interacts with light in more than one way 00:06:48.60\00:06:52.37 it's not just Vitamin D production as important 00:06:52.41\00:06:54.91 as that is. Sunshine is translated, registered, 00:06:54.94\00:06:59.08 inside of us. 00:06:59.11\00:07:00.62 This is one of the most amazing things I found out here 00:07:00.65\00:07:03.92 just recently, when the sun...actually when you are 00:07:03.95\00:07:10.99 exposed to sun the red and infrared rays they penetrate 00:07:11.03\00:07:16.70 quite deep into our body's tissues and they penetrate 00:07:16.73\00:07:21.40 so deeply that they even reach the cerebral cortex. 00:07:21.44\00:07:25.04 And what's really interesting is that there is some research 00:07:25.07\00:07:28.64 where they are trying to look at this and they are saying 00:07:28.68\00:07:31.21 okay what we think is actually part of what is happening is 00:07:31.25\00:07:34.45 you have this fluid called cerebral spinal fluid that 00:07:34.48\00:07:37.29 surrounds your brain and your spinal cord and so when the 00:07:37.32\00:07:43.63 red and the infrared rays from the sun actually penetrate 00:07:43.66\00:07:46.93 into your cerebral spinal fluid it acts kind of like a 00:07:46.96\00:07:50.40 magnifying glass so to speak and it diffuses the light throughout 00:07:50.43\00:07:56.34 your whole brain, especially around the cerebral cortex, 00:07:56.37\00:08:00.74 the outside of the brain which is where the cell body's for 00:08:00.78\00:08:04.18 your brain are and that in turn will directly stimulate the 00:08:04.21\00:08:09.05 mitochondria. There's an enzyme in the mitochondria which has a 00:08:09.08\00:08:13.92 photo-receptors which means that it catches light. 00:08:13.96\00:08:17.59 Wait, we have light catchers inside of us? 00:08:17.63\00:08:21.66 I love this picture, inside ourselves, inside of the 00:08:21.70\00:08:25.17 mitochondria of the cells, we are catching light that is 00:08:25.20\00:08:29.10 streaming from 93 million miles away. 00:08:29.14\00:08:32.17 Sunlight has three different categories of wavelengths 00:08:32.21\00:08:35.84 Visible, Infrared, and ultra- violet light our UV light. 00:08:35.88\00:08:40.08 Vitamin D is produced on our skin as a result of exposure 00:08:40.12\00:08:43.49 to the UV Light. And then there is the invisible infrared light 00:08:43.52\00:08:46.82 which penetrates deeper into our bodies. 00:08:46.86\00:08:49.22 Bypasses, light clothing, penetrates the skin 00:08:49.26\00:08:53.33 and is diffused in our skull entering into the cells 00:08:53.36\00:08:57.43 stimulates the production of the extremely important 00:08:57.47\00:09:01.14 substance melatonin. 00:09:01.17\00:09:02.80 Melatonin is often thought of as just a supplement 00:09:02.84\00:09:06.47 people have to take to help them fall asleep. 00:09:06.51\00:09:09.28 It's true that melatonin is produced in the brain 00:09:09.31\00:09:12.05 in the night in response to dark and is important in 00:09:12.08\00:09:15.25 promoting good sleep. 00:09:15.28\00:09:16.72 But it like everything else in the body has many roles. 00:09:16.75\00:09:20.66 Melatonin is considered one of the body's most powerful 00:09:20.69\00:09:25.19 antioxidants, think of it as an on location well-trained 00:09:25.23\00:09:30.33 Navy Seal Warrior protecting you from harm and danger 00:09:30.37\00:09:34.54 by promptly taking out dangerous molecules, calming ROS down, 00:09:34.57\00:09:39.31 and fighting oxidative stress. 00:09:39.34\00:09:41.54 Remember we talked about this in a previous episode, 00:09:41.58\00:09:45.51 we produce melatonin at night in a gland in our brain 00:09:45.55\00:09:49.48 darkness is actually the queue for the brain to produce 00:09:49.52\00:09:53.19 melatonin... Getting sunlight we're using a lightbox 00:09:53.22\00:09:57.23 first thing in the morning and reducing light exposure 00:09:57.26\00:10:00.26 in the evening can dramatically improve night time 00:10:00.30\00:10:04.20 melatonin production. 00:10:04.23\00:10:05.57 As you can imagine though, melatonin protection is needed 00:10:05.60\00:10:09.90 all the time, not just at night. 00:10:09.94\00:10:12.27 This is where sunlight comes to the rescue, 00:10:12.31\00:10:14.74 not only is melatonin produced in the brain it's also produced 00:10:14.78\00:10:18.91 inside our energy production plants throughout the body 00:10:18.95\00:10:22.25 during the day in response to sunlight. 00:10:22.28\00:10:25.75 This melatonin that is produced inside of the cells 00:10:25.79\00:10:28.76 gets other antioxidants to help fight as well, again protecting 00:10:28.79\00:10:33.66 us from danger and harm. 00:10:33.70\00:10:35.16 How'd this all happen? 00:10:35.20\00:10:37.00 Because you decided to step outside and expose yourself 00:10:37.03\00:10:40.97 to one of nature's powerful healing agents. 00:10:41.00\00:10:43.87 The Sun. And so it's cytochrome- c oxidase, and so when that 00:10:43.91\00:10:49.04 cytochrome-c oxidase gets stimulated by the red and the 00:10:49.08\00:10:53.28 infrared light, that actually helps the mitochondria to work 00:10:53.31\00:10:56.32 better, you get more energy production, you also get 00:10:56.35\00:10:59.95 more of the antioxidant effect and you also even get more 00:10:59.99\00:11:03.93 of the melatonin production from the mitochondria as well. 00:11:03.96\00:11:07.73 And there's a lot of studies that actually showing that 00:11:07.76\00:11:11.27 red and infrared light is tremendously healing for the 00:11:11.30\00:11:16.54 both the mind and the body. I mean there are some stays 00:11:16.57\00:11:20.21 there showing for a traumatic brain injury for example 00:11:20.24\00:11:23.04 that it can help heal some traumatic brain injuries 00:11:23.08\00:11:27.22 and then also for Alzheimer's and for Parkinson's disease. 00:11:27.25\00:11:32.55 and then even for depression. 00:11:32.59\00:11:34.39 When people enter into the winter months, 00:11:34.42\00:11:38.79 a lot of people struggle with what we call SAD 00:11:38.83\00:11:41.40 and it stands for Seasonal Affective Disorders 00:11:41.43\00:11:45.43 so basically they tend to be more depressed when it gets 00:11:45.47\00:11:48.50 darker out in the winter months. 00:11:48.54\00:11:49.90 And what some studies have shown, quite a few studies 00:11:49.94\00:11:54.28 actually, is that when people use light therapy 00:11:54.31\00:11:59.01 that that can actually help reverse that because it resets 00:11:59.05\00:12:02.78 your circadian rhythm. 00:12:02.82\00:12:04.45 And of course, we can say well, just go outside but if it's dark 00:12:04.49\00:12:07.72 most of the day especially in the more northern latitudes 00:12:07.76\00:12:10.59 like if you live in Portland, Oregon, or Seattle 00:12:10.63\00:12:12.83 or something like that or New York even, 00:12:12.86\00:12:15.86 then it's going to be darker much later into the morning 00:12:15.90\00:12:21.14 and earlier at night and so that throws off your 00:12:21.17\00:12:24.71 circadian rhythm and can make you feel depressed. 00:12:24.74\00:12:26.51 Because your body does not have those external queue's when to 00:12:26.54\00:12:31.41 shut off that melatonin, release and really boost up 00:12:31.45\00:12:34.85 the cortisol so that you can wake up and feel like you're 00:12:34.88\00:12:38.29 alert and ready to face a new day and you're like ahh, 00:12:38.32\00:12:40.82 you don't want to get out of bed. 00:12:40.86\00:12:42.19 And so then if you do light therapy with what we call 00:12:42.22\00:12:45.59 a lightbox, that can actually help your body to know 00:12:45.63\00:12:49.46 like okay, now it's time to turn down the melatonin 00:12:49.50\00:12:52.80 and to start to secreting more cortisol, this is when the day 00:12:52.83\00:12:56.91 starts and it can actually be a treatment for 00:12:56.94\00:12:59.67 Seasonal Affective Disorder. 00:12:59.71\00:13:01.14 They've also even found with bipolar depression, bipolar is 00:13:01.18\00:13:07.52 quite related to circadian rhythm disturbance that 00:13:07.55\00:13:10.29 light therapies can be often helpful there too where people 00:13:10.32\00:13:14.06 do bright light therapy several minutes a day and this can help 00:13:14.09\00:13:18.49 to improve their mood significantly. 00:13:18.53\00:13:21.73 What controls these circadian rhythms is the sun. 00:13:21.76\00:13:25.23 You know we wake up in the morning and you know we get 00:13:25.27\00:13:28.67 that beautiful natural sunlight through our eyes, 00:13:28.70\00:13:32.77 through our super cosmetic nucleus and that regulates 00:13:32.81\00:13:35.71 our circadian rhythms. 00:13:35.74\00:13:37.08 And the more we spend time in nature and actually 00:13:37.11\00:13:40.28 that's one of the best ways we can set our circadian rhythm 00:13:40.32\00:13:42.95 right is to go outside. 00:13:42.98\00:13:44.32 Because one thing I will say is that when we are exposed 00:13:44.35\00:13:48.52 to the sun that this actually helps our mitochondria to work 00:13:48.56\00:13:52.76 and our mitochondria remember are the ones that actually 00:13:52.79\00:13:56.67 create melatonin... 00:13:56.70\00:13:58.27 And remember, melatonin not only supports good quality sleep 00:13:58.30\00:14:02.50 but is also our body's most powerful antioxidant. 00:14:02.54\00:14:06.27 Turns out sunshine also affects how well our brain works. 00:14:06.31\00:14:09.48 Yeah, I think with Vitamin D it's also important 00:14:09.51\00:14:12.45 to keep in mind that it really helps the cognitive function 00:14:12.48\00:14:17.09 as well and they found that when your Vitamin D level 00:14:17.12\00:14:20.39 at a higher level, not too but at a good solid level 00:14:20.42\00:14:26.73 that that actually helps people's attention and 00:14:26.76\00:14:29.76 processing speed and it also helps with overall memory 00:14:29.80\00:14:33.40 as well and Vitamin D is very important for immune function. 00:14:33.44\00:14:37.21 Vitamin D is very necessary for the integrity of brain cells. 00:14:37.24\00:14:42.38 Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with cognitive 00:14:42.41\00:14:47.32 impairment and Alzheimer's' disease specifically. 00:14:47.35\00:14:49.78 If you ask me sunlight has been undervalued therapeutic tool 00:14:50.32\00:14:55.82 to say the least. 00:14:55.86\00:14:57.19 I remember 15 or 20 years ago I was in fellowship 00:14:57.23\00:15:02.96 and they were just laughing about Vitamin D saying 00:15:03.00\00:15:06.80 you know, it's not important this quack had given Vitamin D 00:15:06.84\00:15:10.37 and it does not have nothing to do with the heart 00:15:10.41\00:15:13.38 and we know how important Vitamin D is and very essential 00:15:13.41\00:15:18.21 there was a study that was published in the 00:15:18.25\00:15:21.48 Journal of Investigative Dermatology in January 20 00:15:21.52\00:15:25.62 of this year found that nitric oxide that is stored, 00:15:25.65\00:15:30.46 that is stored, remember that we talked about the nitric oxide 00:15:30.49\00:15:33.90 for the endothelial cells. Well, this nitric oxide 00:15:33.93\00:15:36.56 that is stored in the top layer of the skin reacts to sunlight 00:15:36.60\00:15:42.67 and causes blood vessels to widen as the oxide moves into 00:15:42.70\00:15:48.58 the bloodstream, that in turn lowers blood pressure 00:15:48.61\00:15:52.55 so Vitamin D is essential. 00:15:52.58\00:15:55.58 Sunlight lowering blood pressure, that's amazing 00:15:55.62\00:16:00.49 what else can it do? 00:16:00.52\00:16:01.86 People are using red and infrared light through 00:16:01.89\00:16:05.06 their body's, actually a lot of people use the red and infrared 00:16:05.09\00:16:08.13 just for their skin too because they see like Wow, 00:16:08.16\00:16:10.80 it really improves my skin tone and elasticity and all that 00:16:10.83\00:16:14.77 helps to balance our hormonal production like luteinizing 00:16:14.80\00:16:20.21 hormone for example, like for people that are struggling 00:16:20.24\00:16:23.08 with low testosterone levels if you have that light exposure 00:16:23.11\00:16:26.01 in the morning that can actually help to get 00:16:26.05\00:16:28.95 your testosterone levels up. 00:16:28.98\00:16:31.45 That's important, the problem is is that our exposure to light 00:16:31.49\00:16:35.79 is dramatically decreased in the past 100 years. 00:16:35.82\00:16:38.79 In the 1800s the average adult spent 50% of their time outside 00:16:38.83\00:16:43.83 whereas today it's 7%. Yikes! 00:16:43.87\00:16:48.20 And unfortunately even though we live in sunny 00:16:48.24\00:16:52.34 Southern California the percentage of people with 00:16:52.37\00:16:56.04 Vitamin D deficiency is incredibly high 10 to 15 %. 00:16:56.08\00:17:00.48 And we unfortunately see that a lot in the clinic when 00:17:00.52\00:17:05.52 we're treating patients with cognitive decline and so 00:17:05.55\00:17:08.22 we've realized that it's important for people to be 00:17:08.26\00:17:11.06 we are quite aware of their Vitamin D levels. 00:17:11.09\00:17:13.06 If you live above the 37th parallel which is two thirds 00:17:13.09\00:17:18.20 of the United States, even half of California, 00:17:18.23\00:17:21.24 is above the 37th parallel you're making essentially 00:17:21.27\00:17:27.08 zero Vitamin D for up to four months of the year, 00:17:27.11\00:17:29.81 of the fall-winter months because the sun is so low 00:17:29.84\00:17:32.95 on the horizon, even near San Diego where we are 00:17:32.98\00:17:36.79 okay, in the winter months there are on a couple of hours 00:17:36.82\00:17:39.49 where you are actually generating Vitamin D 00:17:39.52\00:17:42.12 if you are outside so that's when most people aren't 00:17:42.16\00:17:45.33 outside. So the other thing is that very few of us 00:17:45.36\00:17:50.43 are actually generating Vitamin D even in that setting 00:17:50.47\00:17:57.04 because as we get older, the ability to convert to produce 00:17:57.07\00:18:02.24 Vitamin D is very very Minimized. 00:18:02.28\00:18:05.78 Also, if we're on a statin lowering cholesterol medication 00:18:05.81\00:18:09.38 that's not going to happen. If we wear any sunscreen, 00:18:09.42\00:18:12.65 it completely negates the ability of sunlight to produce 00:18:12.69\00:18:17.23 Vitamin D, therefore, I always have my patients tested 00:18:17.26\00:18:22.10 so that we're doing personalized medicine so we're making 00:18:22.13\00:18:26.90 decisions that are based on their own blood work 00:18:26.94\00:18:29.27 and almost in every case there have been inadequate levels 00:18:29.30\00:18:32.87 unless they are supplementing. 00:18:32.91\00:18:34.54 So the average individual I see really needs to be on a minimum 00:18:34.58\00:18:39.81 of 4 to 5,000 International Units a day or else they can't 00:18:39.85\00:18:43.59 hope to be above 50. 00:18:43.62\00:18:45.29 When I see a patient and they are having all kinds of problems 00:18:45.32\00:18:48.66 I want to know what their Vitamin D level is. 00:18:48.69\00:18:50.29 Now when I first heard this, I had a hard time believing it. 00:18:50.33\00:18:55.00 The lecturer said that if your practice was north of 00:18:55.03\00:18:58.93 Santa Barbara, 60% of your patients would be low in 00:18:58.97\00:19:02.14 Vitamin D. Here in Mt. Shasta we get 300 days a year of sunshine 00:19:02.17\00:19:07.11 and so I didn't believe it, I said we get lots of sunshine 00:19:07.58\00:19:13.08 this can't be true. 00:19:13.11\00:19:14.72 Over the years I've been testing patients and I've had patients 00:19:14.75\00:19:20.09 as low as nine where the normal, depending on who you talk to 00:19:20.12\00:19:25.46 our current hospital it's 30 to 40 and yet equatorial norm 00:19:25.49\00:19:29.56 where you're getting the most sunshine is 70 to 100 okay. 00:19:29.60\00:19:33.40 The interesting thing is those patients get their Vitamin D 00:19:33.44\00:19:38.21 levels up all kinds of things start changing it's not just 00:19:38.24\00:19:42.28 the immune system, the whole body thrives on that vitamin. 00:19:42.31\00:19:46.61 You know I was a triathlete being outside with my bike and 00:19:46.65\00:19:51.12 running and swimming my Vitamin D level was 11. 00:19:51.15\00:19:56.02 Very low. And why I was so tired? 00:19:56.06\00:19:59.96 Why I was not functioning well? 00:20:00.00\00:20:02.06 So, don't think because you are in the sun, there was this 00:20:02.10\00:20:06.74 another study done in farmers, people that are outside 00:20:06.77\00:20:10.11 all day long, they compared that to someone that was sunbathing 00:20:10.14\00:20:14.64 still for 30 minutes. Guess what? 00:20:14.68\00:20:17.91 Who absorbed the most? Thirty minutes still or 00:20:17.95\00:20:21.72 all day outside in the sun? 00:20:21.75\00:20:23.08 Being still. Sunbathing. 00:20:23.12\00:20:26.62 So that's another thing that we have to, 00:20:26.65\00:20:28.92 especially in the summer, we need to expose our back 00:20:28.96\00:20:32.23 our extremities, to get good Vitamin D because that gets 00:20:32.26\00:20:35.90 stored for the winter. And so you know the sun blockers 00:20:35.93\00:20:40.67 even though they are useful for preventing cancer 00:20:40.70\00:20:47.41 and in people that were fair skin, it's important that 00:20:47.64\00:20:52.78 when you are receiving your sunbathing you cover your 00:20:52.81\00:20:56.55 head with a hat but you expose your body without sunblock. 00:20:56.58\00:21:01.16 That's the way it's going to happen otherwise you 00:21:01.19\00:21:03.56 won't be able to absorb your vitamins. 00:21:03.59\00:21:04.93 So, when I started checking Vitamin D levels 20 years ago, 00:21:04.96\00:21:10.37 I was shocked that my level was low and I lived in Guam 00:21:10.40\00:21:15.34 and I walked, I actually had a membership at the 00:21:15.37\00:21:19.61 Clark Hat Fitness center at the Marriot, because I did a lot of 00:21:19.64\00:21:23.55 lecturing in the evening. I would go to E-Pal Bay 00:21:23.58\00:21:28.78 and walk the bay in the afternoons almost every day 00:21:28.82\00:21:33.19 in a swimming suit and my Vitamin D levels were low. 00:21:33.22\00:21:36.79 Okay, so previous to that I believed in the theory 00:21:36.83\00:21:42.56 that if you were in the sun you know 15 minutes 00:21:42.60\00:21:46.03 two or three times a week wearing normal clothes 00:21:46.07\00:21:49.77 you would generate all the Vitamin D needed. 00:21:49.80\00:21:51.44 That is simply not true. 00:21:51.47\00:21:53.58 You hear that all the time from a health education 00:21:53.61\00:21:57.25 perspective, it's just not true in clinical practice. 00:21:57.28\00:22:00.32 And so basically 98% of my patients on Guam were low 00:22:00.35\00:22:06.99 on Vitamin D. Why because I refer to this as the sun shadow 00:22:07.02\00:22:12.76 standard. How do you know when you're outside if you're 00:22:12.79\00:22:16.16 even generating Vitamin D where the photons from the sunlight 00:22:16.20\00:22:21.20 are at a high enough degree to penetrate the skin and 00:22:21.24\00:22:24.67 convert a form of Cholesterol in your skin into Vitamin D? 00:22:24.71\00:22:29.04 The way to know is that the sun has to be above 45 degrees 00:22:29.08\00:22:36.38 in the sky. Meaning, that's why I call it the sun shadow 00:22:36.42\00:22:42.19 standard, if your shadow is longer than you are tall, 00:22:42.22\00:22:46.66 you're making zero Vitamin D or essentially not enough to 00:22:46.70\00:22:50.27 consider clinically worthwhile. 00:22:50.30\00:22:53.40 Living in the sunniest places in America and yet low in Vitamin 00:22:53.44\00:22:57.61 D, yes, and as we've learned we need sunlight for multiple 00:22:57.64\00:23:03.45 reasons. But I think it's extremely important to realize 00:23:03.48\00:23:06.45 what Dr. Rea is about to state and that is something that can 00:23:06.48\00:23:10.32 be draining our Vitamin D levels. 00:23:10.35\00:23:12.65 If your level is low and you're getting sunlight 00:23:12.69\00:23:16.02 and or supplementing, this needs to be considered. 00:23:16.06\00:23:19.03 And so, if we can keep the Vitamin D high as we can keep 00:23:19.06\00:23:24.13 the Vitamin D functional it will help us manage what's 00:23:24.17\00:23:27.74 happening in the body then if it gets low then we know 00:23:27.77\00:23:31.77 there are systems in the body that are needing modulating 00:23:31.81\00:23:34.08 when we need to think of what's draining the Vitamin D 00:23:34.11\00:23:36.51 why is the Vitamin D being used up so quickly? 00:23:36.54\00:23:38.98 and what do we need to do to turn off that process that 00:23:39.01\00:23:42.78 is requiring so much Vitamin D to modulate it? 00:23:42.82\00:23:45.35 So, you'll find people that are deficient in Vitamin D where 00:23:45.39\00:23:49.72 they're getting enough sun exposure and so you would 00:23:49.76\00:23:52.59 expect them to have adequate Vitamin D and we can always 00:23:52.63\00:23:55.86 bring that back to the fact we will probably have something 00:23:55.90\00:23:58.90 going on that's draining our Vitamin D and requiring 00:23:58.93\00:24:01.30 more Vitamin D than they are able to actually generate 00:24:01.34\00:24:04.61 and we need to figure out what that is and it usually has 00:24:04.64\00:24:06.68 something to do with some inflammatory components 00:24:06.71\00:24:09.28 that are going on with their lifestyle and behaviors. 00:24:09.31\00:24:12.01 Because I'm obsessed with the gut, I'd like to interject here 00:24:12.05\00:24:16.45 about the intentional role of the gut microbiome has in all of 00:24:16.48\00:24:20.32 us because researchers have demonstrated that the makeup 00:24:20.36\00:24:23.46 of a person's gut microbiome is linked to their levels of 00:24:23.49\00:24:27.06 active Vitamin D. 00:24:27.10\00:24:28.43 Vitamin D can take several different forms, 00:24:28.46\00:24:30.77 we have inactive forms of Vitamin D and the body must be 00:24:30.80\00:24:34.47 able to change that into the active form. 00:24:34.50\00:24:37.54 To use Vitamin D the body must metabolize the precursor 00:24:37.57\00:24:41.71 into the inactive form where researchers have found 00:24:41.74\00:24:45.01 is that a person's gut microbiome is the link to their 00:24:45.05\00:24:48.78 levels of active Vitamin D, D in turn influences the 00:24:48.82\00:24:53.59 composition of the gut microbiota. 00:24:53.62\00:24:55.22 Vitamin D regulates intestinal barrier integrity and is an 00:24:55.26\00:25:00.13 anti-inflammatory to the gut. 00:25:00.16\00:25:01.90 Particular types of bacteria appear more often in 00:25:01.93\00:25:06.43 gut microbiomes of men with lots of active Vitamin D. 00:25:06.47\00:25:10.11 The researchers stated that they were surprised to find 00:25:10.14\00:25:13.74 that gut-microbiome diversity was closely associated 00:25:13.78\00:25:17.91 with active Vitamin D. What they are referring to is the variety 00:25:17.95\00:25:22.88 of the bacteria types in the person's gut. 00:25:22.92\00:25:25.32 So you need a healthy gut to have a healthy Vitamin D levels 00:25:25.35\00:25:28.99 and good D levels for a healthy gut. 00:25:29.02\00:25:31.86 Let's talk supplementation real quick. 00:25:31.89\00:25:34.46 Ahh when I treated gestational diabetes every Wednesday in Guam 00:25:34.50\00:25:39.67 we gave our gestational diabetics 10,000 International 00:25:39.70\00:25:44.91 Units based on the studies that were done in that population at 00:25:44.94\00:25:47.98 the time and optimized their Omega 3 fatty acids. 00:25:48.01\00:25:51.11 Those two things alone dramatically all through 00:25:51.15\00:25:55.28 the risk of future disease in those babies 00:25:55.32\00:25:57.15 when they become adults. 00:25:57.19\00:25:58.55 Now we are not sharing that is what you are supposed to do 00:25:58.59\00:26:02.79 if you have gestational diabetes, but it's information 00:26:02.82\00:26:05.99 you can take to your doctor. 00:26:06.03\00:26:07.36 So, the average individual I see really needs to be on a 00:26:07.40\00:26:13.00 minimum 4 to 5,000 International Units a day or else they can't 00:26:13.03\00:26:17.01 hope to be above 50. 00:26:17.04\00:26:18.67 And we just think like okay yeah I know the sun is good 00:26:18.71\00:26:22.34 because of Vitamin D but there are so many aspects... 00:26:22.38\00:26:25.81 Obviously a very natural way of increasing our Vitamin D 00:26:25.85\00:26:29.45 is by getting enough sunshine we're all cooped up inside 00:26:29.48\00:26:33.02 and especially us, we are cooped up in the basement. 00:26:33.05\00:26:36.62 We really need to get out in the sun more often and it's 00:26:36.66\00:26:41.53 important to have some protection from the sun too 00:26:41.56\00:26:44.53 because you don't want to over-expose yourself to the sun 00:26:44.57\00:26:46.77 because of all the skin cancer but even 15 minutes of sunshine 00:26:46.80\00:26:50.41 significantly increases the absorbable type of Vitamin D 00:26:50.44\00:26:55.04 in our bodies that help our brains, our bones, 00:26:55.08\00:26:58.45 our cardiovascular system and I think that's a beautiful 00:26:58.48\00:27:02.52 example of how nature actually helps us stay healthy 00:27:02.55\00:27:07.06 and stay sharp. 00:27:07.09\00:27:08.52 That's what we were made for guys and sunlight shining 00:27:08.56\00:27:12.23 not just on us but in us is a part of God's design for us. 00:27:12.26\00:27:16.00 to experience. 00:27:16.03\00:27:17.37