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Soak up the Sun to Lower Your Blood Pressure!
– Reported, February 26 2014
New research suggests that exposing skin to sunlight may help reduce blood pressure and cut the risk of heart attack and stroke.
During the study, at the Universities of Southampton and Ediuburgh, the skin of 24 healthy individuals was exposed to ultraviolet (UVA) light from tanning lamps for two sessions of 20 minutes each. In one session, the volunteers were exposed to both the UVA rays and the heat of the lamps. In another, the UV rays were blocked so that only the heat of the lamps affected the skin. The results suggest that the UVA exposure dilates blood vessels, significantly lowers blood pressure, and alters nitric oxide (NO) metabolite levels in the circulation, without changing vitamin D levels.
Martin Feelisch, Professor of Experimental Medicine and Integrative Biology at the University of Southampton, believes that it is time for people to reexamine the risks and benefits of sunlight for human health. Avoiding excess sunlight exposure is critical to prevent skin cancer, but not being exposed to it at all, out of fear or as a result of a certain lifestyle, could increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, Dr. Feelisch was quoted as saying.
SOURCE: Journal of Investigative Dermatology, January 2014
