Living in rainy Pacific Northwest deprives the body of the essential Vitamin D. Besides bone health Vitamin D also plays a major role in skin health as it contributes to cell metabolism and growth and lessens itching and flaky skin. While creams and supplements can fight Vitamin D shortages, they can also cause toxicity if the dosages are not monitored carefully while they can be ineffective if taken in moderate dosages. Since Vitamin D is best produced in the skin by exposure to the sun, many of us Seattleites try to compensate for the lack of sun exposure by going to tanning beds with UVA and UVB rays. We all know that excessive tanning can lead to skin damage or even skin cancer. How do we then, make up for the lack of Vitamin D that is essential to keeping our skin looking healthy without risking aging it? That is quite a quandary.

The outer most layer of the skin is called the epidermis. Vitamin D3 is produced in the deeper layers of the skin as a result of the pre-vitamin D3 ‘s exposure to the sun’s UVB rays. UVB rays do not penetrate the skin past the epidermis layer but UVA rays do. Since most sunscreens on the market protect only against UVB rays, it is essential to find ones that protect from UVA like sun blocks with zinc oxide. So if you expose yourself to the sun or in the case of us, Seattle folks, to the tanning beds WITH MODESTY while using the right sun block, then you should be able to compensate for the lack of Vitamin D without damaging your skin with wrinkles and spots. Again I emphasize “WITH MODESTY”.

Katy Issa