Reasons To Exercise In Winter

Research has shown time and again that regular exercise strengthens your immune system so it can fight off bacterial and viral infections. This becomes particularly important in winter when colds and flu rear their ugly heads.When you exercise and get your blood pumping, immune cells circulate through your body more quickly helping them seek and destroy infections. But this boost only lasts for a few hours, so exercise needs to be regular for long-term effects.

Whether it’s the usual winter blues or the more serious SAD (seasonal affective disorder) putting a gloom over the colder months. A daily workout releases feel-good, de-stress brain chemicals, gives you a break from the daily grind and helps ease depression. Plus, if you combine exercise with the great outdoors you can cheer yourself up even more!

We know that after exercise, the brain releases the “feel-good” chemicals serotonin and dopamine, which can help to reduce anxiety and depression while boosting wellbeing,”45 minutes in the day could change your whole outlook on winter!!

Being cooped up with nothing but heaters to keep the air moving means fresh air is much harder to come by in winter! Generally, the air outside is healthier then that inside so going for a walk or run outside gives your lungs a chance to detox and breathe deeply without concern for breathing in other people’s bugs (at home or from the office!)

In the colder months it is so easy to turn to comfort food, because its so satisfying and it makes us feel good, well for a little anyway, and then we feel guilty. Its so easy to become a hibernating bear! No wonder it’s known as the ‘winter weight gain’ period. The average person puts on up to 4 kg! The only way to make up for those added treats is to increase the amount of exercise you’re doing. Try and balance your energy in and energy out then the shredding of clothes in spring wont be such a shock!

Source:livelifegetactive.com/blog/exercise-in-winter/

How to get vitamin D from sunlight

Vitamin D is essential for healthy bones, and in the UK from around late March/early April to the end of September we get most of our vitamin D from sunlight exposure. Find out how to get enough without risking sun damage.

We need vitamin D to help the body absorb calcium and phosphate from our diet. These minerals are important for healthy bones, teeth and muscles.

A lack of vitamin D – known as vitamin D deficiency – can cause bones to become soft and weak, which can lead to bone deformities. In children, for example, a lack of vitamin D can lead to rickets. In adults, it can lead to osteomalacia, which causes bone pain and tenderness.

How do we get vitamin D?

Our body creates vitamin D from direct sunlight on our skin when we are outdoors. From about late March/early April to the end of September, most of us should be able to get all the vitamin D we need from sunlight.

We also get some vitamin D from a small number of foods, including oily fish such as salmon, mackerel, herring and sardines, as well as red meat and eggs. 

Vitamin D is also added to all infant formula milk, as well as some breakfast cereals, fat spreads and non-dairy milk alternatives. 

The amounts added to these products can vary and may only be added in small amounts. Manufacturers must by law add vitamin D to infant formula milk.

Another source of vitamin D is dietary supplements.

How long should we spend in the sun?

Most people can make enough vitamin D from being out in the sun daily for short periods with their forearms, hands or lower legs uncovered and without sunscreen from late March or early April to the end of September, especially from 11am to 3pm.

It's not known exactly how much time is needed in the sun to make enough vitamin D to meet the body's requirements. This is because there are a number of factors that can affect how vitamin D is made, such as your skin colour or how much skin you have exposed. But you should be careful not to burn in the sun, so take care to cover up, or protect your skin with sunscreen, before your skin starts to turn red or burn.

People with dark skin, such as those of African, African-Caribbean or south Asian origin, will need to spend longer in the sun to produce the same amount of vitamin D as someone with lighter skin.  

How long it takes for your skin to go red or burn varies from person to person. Cancer Research UK has a useful tool where you can find out your skin type, to see when you might be at risk of burning.

Your body can't make vitamin D if you are sitting indoors by a sunny window because ultraviolet B (UVB) rays (the ones your body needs to make vitamin D) can't get through the glass.

The longer you stay in the sun, especially for prolonged periods without sun protection, the greater your risk of skin cancer.

If you plan to be out in the sun for long, cover up with suitable clothing, wrap-around sunglasses, seeking shade and applying at least SPF15 sunscreen.

Winter sunlight

In the UK, sunlight doesn't contain enough UVB radiation in winter (October to early March) for our skin to be able to make vitamin D.

During these months, we rely on getting our vitamin D from food sources (including fortified foods) and supplements.   

Using sunbeds is not a recommended way of making vitamin D.

Babies and children

Children aged under six months should be kept out of direct strong sunlight.

From March to October in the UK, children should:

• cover up with suitable clothing, including wearing a hat and wearing wrap-around sunglasses
• spend time in the shade (particularly from 11am to 3pm)
• wear at least SPF15 sunscreen

Source:.nhs.uk/Livewell/Summerhealth/Pages/vitamin-D-sunlight.aspx

The new guidelines on vitamin D

"Experts recommend everyone consider vitamin D supplements over winter," says a headline in today's Daily Mail, while The Guardian urges "Tuck into tuna, salmon and eggs or take vitamin D pills – official health advice".

The headlines were prompted by new advice on vitamin D from Public Health England (PHE), which says that children and adults over the age of one should have 10 micrograms (mcg) of vitamin D every day. This means that some people may want to consider taking a supplement.

The advice is based on recommendations from the government'sScientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) following its review of the evidence on vitamin D and health (PDF, 4.2Mb).

How has the new vitamin D advice been reported?

In general the new government advice on vitamin D has been reported accurately.

However, the Guardian's headline, "Tuck into tuna, salmon and eggs or take vitamin D pills – official health advice" is misleading. While it's important to eat these foods as good sources of vitamin D, the advice is to consider taking vitamin D supplements because it is difficult to get enough from food alone.

Meanwhile, the Express headline, "Everyone should take vitamin D: Health chiefs warn millions are at risk of deficiency," overstates the advice. Most people are simply being asked to consider taking supplements.

And, although roughly one in five people has low vitamin D levels, this is not the same as a vitamin D deficiency. It is not accurate to say that millions of people are at risk of deficiency.

What is vitamin D?

Vitamin D helps to control the amount of calcium and phosphate in our bodies. Both are needed for healthy bones, teeth and muscles.

Vitamin D is found naturally in a small number of foods, including oily fish, red meat, liver and egg yolks. It's also found in fortified foods like breakfast cereals and fat spreads.

However, it's difficult for us to get the recommended amount of vitamin D from food alone.

Our main source of vitamin D is from the action of sunlight on our skin. 

What is the new vitamin D advice?

The new advice from PHE is that adults and children over the age of one should consider taking a daily supplement containing 10mcg of vitamin D, particularly during autumn and winter.

People who have a higher risk of vitamin D deficiency are being advised to take a supplement all year round.

SACN's review concluded that these at-risk groups include people whose skin has little or no exposure to the sun, like those in care homes, or people who cover their skin when they are outside.

People with dark skin, from African, African-Caribbean and South Asian backgrounds, may also not get enough vitamin D from sunlight in the summer. They should consider taking a supplement all year round as well.

Is there new vitamin D advice for children too?

Yes. It's recommended that children aged one to four years should have a daily 10mcg vitamin D supplement all year round.

As a precaution, all babies under one year should have a daily 8.5-10mcg vitamin D supplement to make sure they get enough.

However, babies who have more than 500ml (about a pint) of infant formula a day don't need a vitamin D supplement as formula is already fortified.

The government recommends that babies are exclusively breastfed until around six months of age.

Why are we being advised to take vitamin D supplements?

The government says it has issued new vitamin D recommendations "to ensure that the majority of the UK population has satisfactory vitamin D blood levels throughout the year, in order to protect musculoskeletal health".

The recommendations refer to average intake over a period of time, such as one week, and take account of day-to-day variations in vitamin D intake.

SACN also looked at possible links between vitamin D and non-musculoskeletal conditions, including cancer, multiple sclerosis and cardiovascular disease. They didn't find enough evidence to draw any firm conclusions.

In spring and summer, most of us get enough vitamin D from sunlight on our skin and a healthy, balanced diet.

However, SACN couldn't make any recommendations about how much sunlight people would need to get enough vitamin D because there are a number of factors that can affect how much vitamin D is produced in the skin. So the recommendations assume "minimal sunshine exposure".

During autumn and winter (from October until the end of March) the sun isn't strong enough in the UK to produce vitamin D. That means we have to rely on getting it just from the food we eat. 

Because it's difficult to get enough vitamin D from food alone, many of us risk not getting enough. Taking a supplement helps to keep levels of the vitamin topped up during the colder months.

Where can I get vitamin D supplements?

Vitamin D supplements are widely available from supermarkets and chemists.

Vitamin drops are available for babies. Your health visitor can tell you where to get them. These are available free to low-income families through the Healthy Start scheme.


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Source: nhs.uk/news/2016/07July/Pages/The-new-guidelines-on-vitamin-D-what-you-need-to-know.aspx