by James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H.

The benefits of vitamin D are many.  Fighting off rickets, osteoporosis, cancers, type 2 diabetes and heart disease are just a few.  Used to, everyone got enough vitamin D from sunshine.  But, now, there is a problem.  Skin cancers, including the deadly melanoma, are on the rise, and UV sunlight is a major risk factor.  We don’t know how much sun we can get, if any, without an increased risk.  We are also not sure how much vitamin D is ideal, but the trend is for more.

What is a person to do?

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by James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H.

If you ask most dermatologists how much sun should you get, they’ll probably say “none.” In fact, a dermatology professor at a medical school was fired a few years back after publicly touting sun exposure for vitamin D a little too much.

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