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How sunshine brings disease protection to your gut
When someone is extremely self-absorbed we may say that they think they’re the center of the universe.
My dad, on the other hand, prefers saying that they think the sun shines out their backside.
Well, you know what?
It just might be true for all of us and not just those who think the most of themselves.
And, according to a new study, it may be the key to managing or preventing disease linked to inflammation, including Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).
Gut-altering UV radiation
That’s because this new study, by researchers at the University of British Columbia, has found that the UV radiation you’re exposed to through sunlight can actually change your gut microbiome for the better and those changes show up where else…
Your poop!
Basically, those British Columbia scientists started out with a lot of information to work from but no real answers…
They knew that sun exposure, vitamin D levels, and a healthy gut have each been associated with a lower risk of inflammatory conditions like MS and IBD (as well as a lower chance of flare-ups or relapses). They were also aware of the results of recent studies which suggest that vitamin D alters your gut microbiome for the better.
However, no one knew if getting more sunlight could work the same way to improve that microbiome and limit inflammation by driving vitamin D production.
So, they set out to discover if it would work…
They gave healthy women three one-minute sessions of full-body UVB exposure in a single week, taking stool samples before and after treatment to analyze their gut bacteria — as well as blood samples for vitamin D levels.
And, they found that, sure enough, exposure to UV light significantly increased gut microbial diversity, making it far healthier and more capable of warding off inflammatory diseases.
However, this effect was only seen in women who weren’t already taking a vitamin D supplement.
Why did sun exposure only change the gut microbiome of the non-vitamin D group?
“Prior to UVB exposure, these women had a less diverse and balanced gut microbiome than those taking regular vitamin D supplements,” reports Prof. Bruce Vallance, who led the University of British Columbia study. “UVB exposure boosted the richness and evenness of their microbiome to levels indistinguishable from the supplemented group, whose microbiome was not significantly changed.”
According to the scientists, the results of this study have now proven that we have what they call a skin-gut axis that can allow UVB light exposure to take on a protective role in inflammatory diseases like MS and IBD.
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Getting more of the sunshine vitamin
And, this is good news…
It means that if you’re living with an inflammatory condition or simply want to take every step possible to ward off these damaging and sometimes crippling conditions the sunshine vitamin could be your answer.
Even better, the results showed that whether you choose to get more vitamin D through supplementation or sunlight exposure, you still end up with a healthier gut microbiome which can help you manage or prevent these diseases.
If you’d like more information on the value of vitamin D to your health, including dosing recommendations, as well as what to watch for when getting your levels checked, read Dr. Michael Cutler’s post on the vitamin D link to defeating disease.
Sources:
By Dr. Adria Schmedthorst
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