Week 11

Get 15 minutes of sunshine on your face every day (or 15 minutes of fresh air if it is overcast).

 

I took this photo on February 5, 2011.  It does snow occasionally in Texas, though this winter we have just gotten ice!  I bundled up on this frosty morning in 2011 to enjoy the beauty before the sun melted the snow in our field.  Though it is not good to get too much sun, it is very healthy to get some fresh air and some sun on your skin and face each day.  Yesterday was a gorgeous spring day here in Texas, almost 80 °F.  A beautiful day just calling one to go outside.  It was easy to get some sunshine while working in the garden and fresh air with the house windows open.  Every day will not be as lovely as these days were, but try to enjoy some time outside on most days.  If you can, take a 15 minute walk while you are outside to get your blood circulating too.

 

While too much direct sunlight can cause skin cancer, no direct sunlight is also not healthy and in combination with a poor diet can contribute to many health problems.  Sunlight has many powerful healing benefits.  The most significant is the synthesis of Vitamin D by our bodies.

 

Many people because of a man-made, nutrient-deficient diet are low in vitamin D.  Taking a synthetic vitamin D supplement is not the answer, because it will not be absorbed properly by the body.  Vitamin D is one of the fat soluble vitamins that our bodies desperately need and this deficiency leads to numerous health issues that are so prevalent in our society from osteoporosis to Alzheimer's.  So many diseases have emerged due to low fat diets and not enough time outside.  We need good fats in our diets and sunshine for optimal health.

 

If you work full-time plus, don't think you cannot achieve this challenge.  Everyone gets breaks during the day; use one to get outside.  Also, don't sit in your car or next to a window in the house during this 'sunshine' time.  You do not want to get the sunshine through a window, but directly on your skin and face.

 

Make time each day for this challenge.  Use this time as a 15 minute break from your day to enjoy the beauty of the world around you.

 

Advanced Challenge for those already getting 15 minutes of sunshine on the face each day:

 

Find someone, perhaps an elderly person, that you can help get outside for 15 minutes in the sun each day also. 

 

"Light is sweet, and it pleases the eyes to see the sun.  However many years anyone

may live, let them enjoy them all."  Ecclesiastes 11:7 - 8