Sunbathing is back!

I have a vivid memory of summers in the early 1980’s; the smell of the community pools, tanning oils, and beach bundles back when sunbathing was still in fashion and everyone spent their days at the pool getting golden brown. Don’t tell anyone but my father actually entered a tanning contest, in the1980’s. I love the long summer days. Whether we were at the pool or just outside, it was all day, until sun down. It has cultivated a love of the outdoors for myself and my recreational activities.

In the early 2000’s our collective culture’s relationship to the sun changed. We began to see the golden rays of the sun as harmful.  We focused on the damaging properties of the sun and created products to protect us from the harsher qualities of the sun. We changed our habits all together. We stopped spending as much time outdoors, and when we did we suited up with a thick coat of sunblock, trying to keep the sun away.

Great! now we are protected from the oxidative damage the sun causes to our skin right? The unfortunate part is that we neglected to consider that there are more benefits from the sun for our skin than there are dangers. The sun has a plethora of medicinal properties that without them makes sustaining a long healthy life difficult.

For starters The sun is a critical component in our bodies ability to convert cholesterol to vitamin D. Vitamin D is essential for many processes in the body, including collagen production, mood enhancement,  and  other cognitive and cellular functions.  Yes, you could take a supplement but the best form of vitamin D for the body is the vitamin D the body synthesizes for itself. With the help of sunshine our body naturally converts  our cholesterol to Vitamin D, a major ingredient for proper cellular function and mood enhancement. If we slather sun block on our skin we stop this natural process from happening and potentially cause a deficiency in skin and immune function.

Come to find out not all sun rays are bad for our skin. In fact, red and blue wave length are healing not only for the skin but the fascia  and body within.  Morning light waves actually heal and charge our skin, fascia, and nervous system.

If you do a deep dig, like I have, you’ll quickly learn that before the advent of allopathic medicine, heliotherapy was consider an affective treatment for Tuberculosis, rickets and other neuromuscular and mood disorders.

Let bring Sun bathing for health and wellness back into our lives. But remember there are a few guidelines you should consider for health light and sun exposure. The best time of day to get the most out of the healing rays are early morning, before 10 am, and at sunset. If you do have plans to play outside all day the best protection is to cover up with clothing. If you are going to use a sunscreen know your ingredient. Many sunscreen are  petroleum and chemical based products, loaded with allergens, carcinogens, and other known immune disrupters.

In my opinion, after all my research into ancient skincare techniques from around the world, I would say if you take care of you skin properly your skin will take care of you. The important part is keeping your skin hydrated and mineralized, some oils help us with this. The ancient Meso-American cultures like the aztec, used Avocado oil to help protect the skin from the harsh noon rays. Avocado oil has a natural SPF of 8-10, that is all the skin really needs, anything else is excessive. The Ancient Greek, Roman and Egyptians use Olive oil for anything, including skincare and sun protections. Olive oil has a natural SPF of 6-8 along with antioxidant properties.  A

EarthBody Sun Salve is the best option when it comes to skincare and sun protection! Not only do we use all natural food based products. Our Sun Salve has an olive oil base infused with herbs and spices and everything nice to help protect and heal your skin from oxidative damage. Our Coffee infusions remove the burn before it happens. Check out our products and give to your skin what it needs!