Your skin needs sunlight to make vitamin D. But a study in Australia shows that if you get a lot of sun, you need to pair vitamin D with another powerful nutrient to stay healthy.
The research shows that sun exposure is linked to having less folate (vitamin B9) in your body. Keeping levels of this B vitamin higher is especially important for healthy circulation and cellular longevity.
Researcher Michael Kimlin says the research shows that women who spend a lot of time in the sun have folate levels that are less than those recommended for women.
The study of 45 women aged 18 to 47 shows that the sun can drop your blood level of folate by 20 percent.
This can be dangerous because folate is linked with a lower incidence of breast cancer and heart disease, and it helps you survive in the sun by increasing circulation.
How much folate is best? Well, don’t go by the RDI. It’s only micrograms a day. The British Journal of Nutrition did a study and found the amounts people typically get to be absurdly low. The authors wrote, “…typical folate intakes are sub-optimal [and] generally insufficient to achieve a folate status associated with the lowest risk of” disease.
Beans, asparagus and spinach are the best natural sources of folate from whole foods. And you can get as much folate as you want if it occurs naturally in food. For supplementing, you need twice the RDI, or about 800 mcg a day, for optimal health. Pair it with 1 mg of vitamin B12 a day, as these two water-soluble vitamins work together in your body.
