Press Release of the Day: Canadians underexposed to sunlight!

THIS JUST IN! Vitamin D deficiency is becoming a hidden epidemic as media teaches Canadians to fear the sun! From Canada News Wire:

TORONTO, April 25 /CNW/ - As Canadians brace for the much awaited warm summer months there is something else that our bodies crave - sunlight.

Alarmingly however, Canadian public health messaging has resulted in the demonization of sunlight. The amount of fear this dogma has created is potentially damaging to the health of Canadians.

Recent vitamin D research has shown that 97 percent of Canadians and a majority of Americans are vitamin D deficient today. And, the facts are clear. Humans get 90 percent of their vitamin D naturally from sunlight. To say that your skin should not be exposed to UV light is to say that your body should suffer vitamin D deficiency - the most severe result of sun-avoiding behavior.

"The professional indoor tanning community is the voice of reason on this issue: sunburn prevention - not sun avoidance - is what we need to be teaching. Moderate UV exposure increases vitamin D production."

So Health Canada is damaging the health of Canadians through the "demonization of sunlight"? That's the OPPOSITE of what Health Canada should be doing. Alarming, indeed!

But what can Canadians do to buck the media fear-mongering and halt this potentially-but-not-actually-rampant vitamin deficiency? According to the Joint Canadian Tanning Association — a national non-profit organization created to increase understanding of the professional tanning industry, which, incidentally, authored this press release — the solution is simple: pay a salon to give you a tan! It's the responsible Canadian thing to do.

"The public has been hearing from lifestyle media for years how bad the sun is for you. Unfortunately the message is heavily influenced by large amounts of advertising dollars. Just have a look at web sites like www.sunsafetyalliance.com and www.skincancer.org and you can see who the funders behind the message are. The unfortunate part of all this is that an unintended consequence occurs, that being vitamin D deficiency," Gilroy said.

If you're interested in learning more about tanning — and why not? It's only your LIFE we're talking about here — check out the Joint Canadian Tanning Association's website at tancanada.org.