The Benefits of Living in Sunny South Florida

Summer is here and even though it's almost impossible to walk outside without breaking a sweat, it's important to get sunlight! The sun is not just essential for warmth, but also for its life-giving properties.

The best-known health benefit of sunlight is its ability to boost your body's vitamin D levels. Over 1,000 different genes in the body are regulated by Vitamin D3 (the active form of vitamin D).

In Florida, it is not hard to get enough vitamin D as long as you go outside. Most cases of vitamin D deficiency are caused by a lack of outdoor sun exposure. Vitamin D deficiency can cause increased risks to many types of cancer, arthritis, and multiple sclerosis. Vitamin D is essential for your overall health so ignore the temptation of your AC for a bit to soak up those rays!

5 Reasons Why the Sun Is Good For Your Health:

1. Sunlight helps strengthen your bones: The primary purpose of Vitamin D is to regulate normal calcium and phosphorous levels to support the majority of metabolic functions, neuromuscular transmission, and bone mineralization.

2. Sunlight helps improve your mood. Sunlight stimulates endorphins and can help with depression.

3. Sunlight helps to fight off cancer. Too much sun can lead to some types of skin cancer, however other cancers can be a result of a lack of sunlight.

4. Sunlight helps with skin disorders. Skin disorders such as psoriasis can be controlled and sometimes cured through controlled exposure to sunlight.

5. Sunlight helps prevent insomnia. Daytime exposure to sunlight increases melatonin production, allowing you to sleep more easily at night.

Sunlight has even been shown to improve liver and kidney function as well as balance your metabolism through stimulation of the thyroid. So get out there and enjoy the sun!