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Sunlight Is a Nutrient: Why Getting Outside Matters for Your Metabolism
127 Plays1 month ago
This week’s episode is a juicy one! We’re talking all things sunlight and how it’s linked to your metabolic health. If you’ve ever been told to fear the sun or slather on SPF at the first sign of daylight, it’s time for a reframe.
You’ll learn:
- Why sunlight is a nutrient and a key player in metabolic health
- The different types of sunlight throughout the day—and how each one benefits your body
- How your circadian rhythm and thyroid hormones are connected to sun exposure and why this reveals your body’s intelligent design
- Practical tips for safe sun time (without the fear-mongering)
- Common myths about the sun and why avoiding it could be doing more harm than good
This one might ruffle some feathers, but it’s packed with truth, science, and encouragement to get back to what our bodies were designed for.
This is your encouragement to reclaim the sun as a vital part of your wellness routine. 🌞
Links:
Simply Summer Meal Plan & Recipe Book
Primally Pure Nontoxic Sunscreen (Code cassidy10)
Ready to learn more? I’ve got a ton of free resources for you!
🎉 FOLLOW me on IG @cassidy.woelfel 🎉
SIGN UP for my webinar on assessing your thyroid and metabolism at home for free
Check out my course Metabolism by Intelligent Design
SUBSCRIBE to this podcast ❤️
And don’t forget to shout me out online 😍
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to 'Eat Like a Mother'
00:00:14
Speaker
Welcome to the eat like a mother podcast where we take complicated topics surrounding hormones and metabolism and make them simple and applicable to your daily life as a woman. I'm your host castie. Well fell.
00:00:25
Speaker
My hope is that you walk away feeling empowered to start taking radical responsibility for your health and lean into this body. God created for you. Are you ready to eat like a mother? This podcast is meant for educational purposes only and is not meant to be taken as medical advice.
00:00:43
Speaker
Please consult your physician before making any dietary or lifestyle changes.
Recap: Healing Acne Naturally
00:00:47
Speaker
Well, welcome back to this week's episode of the podcast. Last week, I talked all about how I healed my acne and gave some pointers on how to naturally clear your skin and that begins with your gut health.
00:00:59
Speaker
And I teased a little bit about sunlight and the importance of sunlight for healthy skin. And today I actually want to talk more about sunlight and why it matters for proper metabolic health.
Sunlight's Health Benefits
00:01:12
Speaker
So There are a couple of things that most people probably already know that the sun does. And so we're going to talk about some of those things.
00:01:19
Speaker
And then today we're going to talk about the different types of sunlight that we get that come from morning versus midday versus evening light. We're going to talk about your circadian rhythm and your thyroid hormones and how that all works together, which is so juicy. And I'm so excited for you to hear about that today.
00:01:38
Speaker
And then I'll give you some practical tips on how to practice safe sun exposure because I know this is a hot topic and there really is truly a way to get more time in the sunshine without burning where you can utilize all of the benefits that come from uninhibited exposure to the sun, but we have been lied to for so long that the sun is dangerous and to avoid sun exposure at all costs, to cover up, to wear sunscreen, to wear glasses and all of these things.
00:02:11
Speaker
And so I'm going to dispel some of those myths today as well and give you some practical
Sunlight, Mitochondria, and Metabolism
00:02:17
Speaker
advice. So buckle up, this is a juicy episode. really excited to jump into it because hello, perfect timing, we're in the month of June now.
00:02:24
Speaker
if you are like me and you live in a southern state y'all i mean i don't technically count tennessee as a southern state i know everybody else does but i'm from south texas i lived in florida for a while And so if you're like me, you understand heat, you understand the importance of not being an idiot in the sunshine.
00:02:47
Speaker
So let's talk about that today. And before I give you all those practical tips, let's talk about why the sun is so important for metabolic health. So most people know that sunlight helps to make vitamin d through UVB exposure, but it also activates key photoreceptors that influence the thyroid and the metabolism.
00:03:10
Speaker
One of the biggest ways that it promotes metabolism and improves metabolic function has to do with the mitochondria, which is where ATB is produced, right? This is the definition of metabolism is when energy is created within the cell and that energy is created in the mitochondria. You know, let's think back to freshman biology, right? This is the powerhouse of the cell where energy is created.
00:03:35
Speaker
So red light and near infrared light from sunlight penetrate deep into the skin and the tissues. And these wavelengths actually support mitochondrial biogenesis and ATP production, thus improving cellular energy output or in layman's terms, improving your metabolic function.
Morning and Evening Sunlight
00:03:55
Speaker
And we know that when our mitochondria, when our metabolism is functioning optimally, we're going to get better insulin sensitivity, we're going to have better fat oxidation, our hormones are going to be overall more balanced.
00:04:08
Speaker
And while eating enough food really is one of the most important ways that we can improve metabolic function, improve ATP production, another key nutrient that a lot of people don't talk about is sunlight. I consider sunlight a nutrient.
00:04:22
Speaker
And if we are not getting enough of it, then our cells are not going to work at max capacity. Our mitochondria are not going to be working at max capacity. So let's talk a little bit about the different kinds of light during the day, because I talk about getting morning sunshine all the time. Morning and evening sunshine are some of the most important, in my opinion, lights that you can get. But we'll also talk a little bit about midday sun today as well.
00:04:46
Speaker
I don't talk a lot about it, though it is really important. I usually, you know, for timing's sake, I usually hone in on morning and evening sunshine and the importance of that because that little habit of getting morning and evening sunshine is so beneficial and supercharging your cells.
00:05:05
Speaker
But we're going to talk a little bit about midday sun as well. So first, let's talk about morning light. Okay, so this is anywhere between sunrise and 10am. I get the question all the time. You know, if I can't wake up with the sun, what what time do I get sunshine on my eyes? What do I do? When do I do it?
00:05:23
Speaker
Y'all don't overthink this. If you're getting morning sunshine, just try to get it before 10 o'clock in the morning. That's when the UV rays are going to be their lowest and where you are going to get the most anti-inflammatory light of the day.
00:05:38
Speaker
And that's because this light from sunrise to 10 a.m. is high in red, orange, and near infrared light. So this stimulates, and I'm gonna have to read this because i always get the name wrong, but it stimulates what's known as intrinsically photosensitive retinol ganglion cells.
00:05:57
Speaker
in the eye, which if you don't know, which why would you not know that these trigger the circadian clock via the brain's super chiasmic nucleus or SCN. Okay. And we'll talk more about the circadian rhythm, your circadian clock in a little bit, but just put a pin in that right now because your circadian rhythm is spoiler alert really important for the release of thyroid hormone but more on that in a second other things that morning light is really beneficial for is it increases dopamine release in the body it helps to support a healthy release of stress hormones so in the morning when we wake there's a natural rise of cortisol we want to have a natural rise of cortisol
00:06:40
Speaker
If you ever feel sluggish or tired, groggy, not really well rested in the morning, this could possibly be linked back to a poor circadian rhythm or a not very well synced circadian clock, meaning that you're not getting a good release of cortisol in the morning, which is what we want.
00:06:57
Speaker
So getting that morning sunshine on our eyes can actually help improve the rhythm in our body so that cortisol does naturally rise in the morning. And then when we get this morning sunshine on our eyes,
00:07:09
Speaker
Our body is synced with nature and then it will naturally allow cortisol to decrease and thyroid hormone to take on the role of energy production, which
Consequences of Sunlight Deficiency
00:07:20
Speaker
is what we want. We don't want cortisol and adrenaline to be doing the job of energy production. That is a recipe for an autoimmune disease.
00:07:28
Speaker
So when we're getting that morning sunshine, it's telling our brain, okay, cortisol is up. The sun is up. we are ready to release thyroid hormone and get going with our day.
00:07:40
Speaker
This is because this morning sunlight will promote the release of TRH or thyrotropin releasing hormone, which then triggers TSH, which is our thyroid stimulating hormone.
00:07:53
Speaker
And thus TSH will be used to trigger the release of T4 and T3. T4 is the inactive form of thyroid hormone and T3 is the active form You get more T4 than you do T3 released from the thyroid. We need the liver and other organs to help to convert T4 into T3, which the sun actually benefits the liver and the kidneys and the intestines, which are necessary for the proper conversion of T4 into T3. So the sun, the morning sun specifically, is doing a lot for the conversion of thyroid hormone. And this is because our TSH levels follow a natural daily rhythm. They peak at night.
00:08:33
Speaker
But light exposure, especially in the morning, again, influences that conversion of T4 into T3, our active thyroid hormone. And if we are not getting proper light exposure, if we are not getting that regulation of our circadian rhythm with the sunshine, then this can lead to poor T3 or active thyroid hormone uptake and even hypothyroid-like symptoms.
00:08:58
Speaker
Think about it like this. When there is less sunshine, when we are not getting enough sunshine, our body perceives it as a type of hibernation.
00:09:09
Speaker
When we are not exposed to natural light, then our body will start to slow down metabolic processes in order to conserve energy, in order to keep our body functioning, to keep our vital organs going.
00:09:23
Speaker
It will conserve energy, slow down metabolism, slow down metabolic function and induce this high hibernation or hypothyroidism to keep us alive.
00:09:34
Speaker
And that is directly linked to our light exposure. Because if we're not getting sunshine, the body thinks it's winter, it's time to conserve, it's not time
Vitamin D Production
00:09:43
Speaker
to release. So this is one major reason why it's so important to be getting adequate sun exposure to actually help our body utilize the nutrients that we are receiving, the nutrients that we're taking in.
00:09:55
Speaker
Poor light hygiene, not getting enough light, staying indoors, you know, being under artificial lights all day can suppress melatonin, will alter our TSH secretion. It will even disrupt insulin response and our metabolic rate. There a lot of downsides to not getting enough light exposure.
00:10:14
Speaker
So start with morning sunlight from sunrise to 10 a.m. Okay, let's now shift gears and talk a little bit about midday sun. And this is what probably most people think about when we think about the sun's tie to our body. I know there was a little bit of talk of the sun and the circadian rhythm when I was learning physiology in school, but we really spent more time talking about the use of sunlight in the conversion of cholesterol into vitamin d3 via the skin and this is a complex system that involves the liver and the kidneys and the skin and sunshine
00:10:53
Speaker
And very basically when this full spectrum UVB light hits the skin, it will help to convert cholesterol into vitamin d three which again is essential for, everyone probably knows this, but immune regulation, calcium metabolism, hormonal function, including testosterone and thyroid support. So it is beneficial for thyroid hormone and thyroid metabolism.
00:11:17
Speaker
However, this time of day, needs to be taken with care and this is when we'll get into more safe sun exposure because that time between 10 and 2 p.m. is where you really want to practice more safe sun exposure because it is when you are more likely to burn especially if you haven't built up a sun callus or a tolerance to the sun which we'll cover in just a second.
00:11:41
Speaker
But just remember, morning sunshine is more beneficial for mitochondrial function. Midday sun is when we're gonna get more immune system benefits. It's not as much red light in the middle of the day. So we're not getting all of those amazing like healing properties that we would get from the red light in the morning or the evening.
00:12:00
Speaker
But it's still beneficial because we're getting that conversion happening. Our liver and our kidneys are working really well with the sun at this time to promote good immune function. And if you didn't know, the light that you get during the summer kind of builds up a sort of bank, if you will, or savings account. That's a better that's a better analogy.
00:12:25
Speaker
The sun that you get during the summer builds a savings account for you. to help carry you through winter. So I know there's a lot of debate on whether or not you should supplement vitamin D during the winter, especially if you live in maybe a northern state or a cloudier state.
00:12:41
Speaker
But this is the time if you are in the summer right now and you live in a northern state, which you are in the summer if you're listening to this right now. um I'm recording it. you're You're going to be listening to this the first week of July, okay? Okay.
00:12:56
Speaker
You need to be utilizing the sunshine because it's going to build a savings account of vitamin D to help carry you through the winter time. So if in theory, you're getting enough sun exposure during the summertime, there will be no need to supplement vitamin d three in the winter because you have such a copious exposure.
00:13:16
Speaker
savings account. So tuck that little piece of information away in your back pocket because this
Evening Light and Sleep
00:13:22
Speaker
is really important. So if you thought that morning and evening sun are the most important, they're very important, but that midday sun is what's going to help protect your immune system, protect your bones, protect your teeth, protect all of your hormonal functions, and also build that bank for immune resiliency when the sun is not as prominent during the winter seasons.
00:13:44
Speaker
And then next, let's talk about evening light. Okay, this is the golden hour. This is, again, just like morning light, it's very rich in red and near-infrared light. In the morning and the evening sun, it is not possible to burn.
00:13:58
Speaker
This is going to be the times that you are going to be building up a sun callus. Getting your naked eye on morning and evening sunshine is going to help your body to not only regulate circadian rhythm, but you can get more time in the sun without the risk of burning because the light wavelengths at this time, you really can't burn.
00:14:19
Speaker
So that evening sunshine, it's gonna signal the body it's time to wind down. This is when cortisol starts to suppress. It will promote proper melatonin production, which literally starts hours before bed. A lot of people don't think about this, but getting that good warm red light in the evening is going to start signaling your body to wind down to prepare your nervous system for deep sleep when metabolic repair and hormonal repairs are occurring.
00:14:49
Speaker
It's important to remember this that our evening sunshine is more red, more warm light because when you are under artificial light after the sun has gone down, this will directly inhibit your circadian rhythm and it will keep cortisol elevated which will then keep you awake.
00:15:06
Speaker
So one way that you can help improve your sleep hygiene, you can help improve your circadian rhythm and thus improve your thyroid function, your metabolic function is simply not being under artificial lights after
Sunlight and Body Timing
00:15:21
Speaker
sundown. So something that we do is we have red lights in our home. So we use that after sundown. we use candles, which are much softer, much warmer after sundown.
00:15:33
Speaker
we also have incandescent light bulbs in all of our lamps. and you can ask my family like I am I'm kind of a maniac when it comes to light when the sun is not up if anyone turns on an overhead light there's absolute hell to pay that does we just do not do that after sundown or before sun up it will only be incandescent light bulbs it will only be red lights it will only be candles okay my husband is still learning this but
00:16:05
Speaker
But he takes my hell whenever I come downstairs and there's an overhead light on or it's nighttime and he has all the lights on to clean the kitchen. Okay? Just know everyone's work in progress. Even in my house, this is still a debate.
00:16:19
Speaker
But to the best of your ability, now you have this knowledge and create an environment that promotes better sleep and you and your family will begin to sleep more deeply. And the last thing I'll say about sunlight and circadian rhythm and why this is so important is you know we know that the release of thyroid hormone is directly regulated by the sun's timing there is a time in your body there's a clock in your body that tells when your thyroid needs to release thyroid hormone, when your metabolism needs to be revved up, right?
00:16:54
Speaker
This is true for every system of the body. Our body is not operating all systems at all times. There are specific times of the day that our systems clock in. For instance, our liver is most active between 2 and 4 a.m. That's when it's doing most of its detoxification.
00:17:14
Speaker
Our kidneys, they have different times that they do things. Our ovaries, our body has an internal clock and that is directly
Sunlight: Metaphor and Design
00:17:23
Speaker
linked to the sunshine. God legitimately designed us to be in connection with nature and this modern society is not conducive of human physiology because we are indoors we are not exposed to natural light we are not getting enough sunshine on our body for our hormones our metabolism our systems to all be operating in the timing and with the support that they need and that comes from the sun man i mean think about this metaphor and
00:17:55
Speaker
If you're a Christian, your body literally does not function without the sun. How beautiful is that metaphor? Our bodies, our life cannot happen without the sun, without the son of God, without the sun.
00:18:10
Speaker
heavenly sun. i mean, y'all, come on. Do you do you see what I'm, do you pick up what I'm dropping? This is awesome, right? i this is one of the reasons why I love human anatomy and physiology, why I love science so much, because I do not believe that you can study science and not see that there's an intelligent design, that all science, all creation, all anatomy, all physiology points back to a creator. It just, ah I love it so much. And I remember, this is a little rabbit trail for y'all today.
00:18:45
Speaker
I remember being in college and I would be in you know, my courses because I took a lot of science classes, right, for my degree, blah, blah, blah. But I remember being in all these different courses and truly my professors would go down a train of thought and the train of thought logically would come to a point where the only possible answer is that there has to be an intelligent design.
00:19:12
Speaker
There has to be a creator that made this intricate, beautiful, complex thing happened And I found it interesting that so many of my professors would get to this point and they're brilliant, brilliant people, but they would get to this point where that is the only logical conclusion.
Building a Sun Callus
00:19:32
Speaker
And then their answer would be, but we'll never know why this happens. Come on, guys. Come on. We all know why, but you're just choosing not to. Anyways, that's my little rabbit trail for you today. Let's circle back and let's talk about building a sun callous.
00:19:49
Speaker
so that you can get more safe sun exposure and not be at risk of burning because we don't want skin damage, right? We don't want sun damage and that's something that is kind of lost on social media when people are talking about sun exposure and not wearing sunscreen, um which I don't wear sunscreen, right? Like i I don't use it, my family doesn't use it and we don't burn.
00:20:10
Speaker
but there are some things that you want to take into account and that you want to put into place in order to help build a sun callus and prepare your body and safely expose your skin to the sun. Again, don't be an idiot, right?
00:20:24
Speaker
There's a quote in the office where Dwight is asked, what is most influential thing that Michael Scott has ever said to you? And Dwight says, don't be an idiot.
00:20:35
Speaker
And now, Anytime i want to do something, I think, would an idiot do that? And if they would, i do not do that thing. That is the quote that I keep in mind all the time for anything, but specifically safe sun exposure. So how can we build a sun callus and how can we practice safe sun exposure?
00:20:56
Speaker
So the first thing that's going to be most important is getting that morning and evening sunshine. Getting this morning and evening sunshine helps to sort of precondition your skins before that more intense UVB exposure.
00:21:13
Speaker
This is when sebum and oils are going to be released to protect your skin. This is when inflammation is most reduced and DNA repairs enhanced.
00:21:24
Speaker
Our blood flow increases in morning and evening sunshine. This timing, getting morning and evening sunshine, and ideally you would be doing this weeks before the heat of summer, right? To slowly and gradually increase your exposure, you know, build a callus, right? Gradual sun exposure beginning with morning and evening sunshine.
00:21:46
Speaker
When we do this, it will improve melanin production And so this is when essentially the skin cells will thicken and there will be improved antioxidant activity in the skin cells when you are gradually increasing sun exposure.
00:22:02
Speaker
with the morning and evening sunshine. Now there are a couple of caveats to this or a couple of asterisks that you need to put here, okay? If you are consuming PUFAs, polyunsaturated fatty acids, which I talked about these on the podcast a couple of weeks ago, you can go back and listen to that episode.
00:22:18
Speaker
But if you're consuming polyunsaturated fatty acids, these are actually going to increase oxidation in the skin and will increase your risk of burning. So it will lower that antioxidant activity that's happening in skin cells and increase your risk of oxidative stress and oxidative damage, which is where we get sunburns, skin cancer, skin, is you know, things like that.
00:22:41
Speaker
So if you're wanting to increase a sun callus, increase your ability to practice, say, sun exposure, then you really need to cut PUFAs from your diet completely. That's one area.
00:22:52
Speaker
If you know me, i never recommend the complete cutting of foods from a diet. I will never advocate for cutting out entire food groups. However, polyunsaturated fatty acids are not food. They have no nutritional value. you do not need them.
00:23:08
Speaker
get rid of them and opt for saturated fats. Those are going to be more skin protective.
The Case Against Sunglasses
00:23:14
Speaker
Saturated fats are full of vitamins and minerals that the sun will utilize to help protect our skin, to help build our hormones, repair our immune system, improve metabolic function, all of the good things, right?
00:23:26
Speaker
So ditch PUFAs, Opt for saturated fats when you are consuming fat. And then other things that you can do to improve your body's ability to utilize sunshine is stop wearing sunglasses for one.
00:23:39
Speaker
When sunglasses are worn, our body thinks it's nighttime. It's not going to produce the things that it needs to to protect the skin. if it thinks it's nighttime okay remove the sunglasses and even if you have light eyes which i'm among you i have blue eyes and i've always been told that blue eyes are more sensitive to sunshine so you have to wear sunglasses in order to avoid eye damage bull crap my eyes have improved my eyesight has improved more over the last couple of years of not wearing sunglasses than it ever has
00:24:12
Speaker
Now, my eyes used to be very sensitive to the sunshine whenever I first started and it took time. So wear hats, utilize shade, things like that.
00:24:23
Speaker
But your eyes will adapt. The body ah adapts when you give it the chance. So if you're someone with blue eyes and you've been told, don't go in the sun, wear sunglasses, protect your eyes, y'all.
00:24:35
Speaker
I call BS. Get your naked eyes in the sun. I can't speak for everyone and I'm praying that this is a podcast in the future when I get to tell you about how I've healed my eyesight. it It is improving, but I am not completely healed, so I still have to wear corrective lenses.
00:24:52
Speaker
Story for another time. But... Sunshine is so healing and it's so important to get quality sunshine on your naked eyeballs. So stop with the glasses, stop with the sunglasses so that your body can know what time it is and know what to do with the sun that it's getting.
Safe Sun Practices
00:25:09
Speaker
And then of course, remember, don't be an idiot, okay? If you're someone that lives in the south, don't go spend eight hours in direct sunlight with no breaks, with no sunscreen. Yes, I said sunscreen.
00:25:25
Speaker
I obviously recommend non-toxic sunscreen. I do not recommend any sunscreen with oxybenzone or fragrance in it. That itself is going to increase your risk of skin cancer, but get a good non-toxic sunscreen or a tallow-based sunscreen.
00:25:39
Speaker
If you know you are going to be in direct sunlight and you have not built up your callus, okay? Don't be an idiot. Remember, I just got to keep saying that. Just think that. I say this with all the love of my heart because again, I'm from South Texas. My husband is a blue collar worker.
00:25:56
Speaker
And so he spent a lot of summers in direct sunlight all day, every day. And so you got to be smart, okay? Don't eat poofas. Don't wear sunglasses. Don't. build up that sun callus. And if you have to be in direct sunlight, yeah, wear non-toxic sunscreen or long sleeve shirts to practice more safe sun exposure.
00:26:15
Speaker
And then as you do that, build your callus over time. So all that to say, this whole episode to say, the sun really important, which is probably not the most eloquent way to tell you that.
00:26:31
Speaker
I, y'all, I should not have a podcast. I should not be allowed to speak about these things. However, I really enjoy it and I'm actually really good at it Sometimes I just don't have all the right, most eloquent, most beautiful words, but I'm going to work on it for y'all because I love doing this.
00:26:51
Speaker
Anyways, the sun's super important for proper metabolic health, proper hormonal health, proper circadian rhythm. All of it is interconnected. Every system of the body relies on every system of the body. Basically, even on a biological level, we cannot operate without community.
00:27:08
Speaker
Our systems require community with other systems. Our system, our biology requires community with the sun, requires abiding with the sun. And so if you're not getting proper sun exposure, if you're not practicing safe sun exposure, you're asking for metabolic disaster.
Conclusion and Engagement
00:27:26
Speaker
So I hope y'all got a lot from this week's episode. i love talking about this and I cannot wait to see you again next week.
00:27:38
Speaker
If you found this podcast helpful or encouraging, would you mind leaving us a rating or review? I love hearing from you. So be sure to shout us out on Instagram and tag me at Cassidy dot well bell.
00:27:49
Speaker
And we'll be sure to shout you right back out. Let's get this message to as many women as possible until next time, friend.