The recommendation is 10-15 minutes, 2-3 times a week. And yes, those with fair skin such as yours that does not tan, but only burns and I agree that sunscreen is a good idea. As far as aging goes... only time ages our skin. When we use our bodies the way they were intended to be used, they show signs of use. Our hands callous and spot when we work with them, our joints develop signs of arthritis when our bodies are especially active, and our skins show their true age if we spend our days outdoors in the fresh air with the elements. What we get in exchange for that is strong bones, a healthy heart, healthy endocrine system, healthy digestion and cancer-free organs.
Everything in moderation. Regardless of the substance, too much of it will be toxic in one way or another. Exposure to UV energy is literally necessary for us to survive. Not only does moderate exposure to sunlight cause a series of physiologically necessary chemical reactions, it also prevents depression and seasonal weight gain, it improves mood, energy, appetite, libido and attention deficit issues. The most common skin cancers caused by regular exposure are non-melanoma type cancers. These can be easily removed by a dermatologist and do not pose a serious risk to us.

This same moderate exposure protects our bodies from not only organ melanomas, but SKIN melanomas as well. Funny isn't it? The same dose of sunlight that causes harmless skin cancers actually prevents deadly skin cancers. So, which is it? Is UV a carcinogen or an anti-carcinogen? I believe that the answer is, like most everything else in our environment, both too little AND too much is unhealthy. So when the so-called "experts" start telling us to completely avoid something (and I don't mean toxins like lead or arsenic, lol) it raises a red flag for me. Bad science can do a lot of harm.

As far as being fair-skinned and unable to tolerate the exposure goes? I'm sad for you. Not only does it almost completely clear up KP, but it is difficult to get the right amount of vitamin D in supplement form. Best of luck to you. -Laura

LauraAnn--
Interesting stuff! I have even read that current recommendations of 400 IU of Vit.D is considered to be too low by health professionals. Some physicians recommend at least 1000 IU of VIT D. What's even more interesting is the recent large study that suggests supplemental calcium is not "doing the job" of bone protection as once thought--check out

http://www.cnn.com/2006/HEALTH/02/15....ap/index.html

What we used to think of as "tried and true" remedies are now being questioned; we have to do our research!

ARGH!! I just lost 30 minutes of posting by pushing a stupid button. I'll try to remember most of it.
Yeah it sucks ass.
Well not necessarily, more things than time age our skin. Sun exposure and carcinogens age us too. A normal cell gets 50,000-500,000 breaks in DNA every day, an dna repair enzymes are right on top of it. However, sun exposure causes more breaks in DNA and it becomes harder and harder to repair genetic material. Aging is basically that, inability to repair genetic material correctly, and with time, mutations during prophase etc. The sun just speeds it up. People will eventually be able to live "forever", because eventually we wont have the same aging problems we have nowadays. The only thing that will kill us is cancer. Everybody, will experience cancer at some point of their lives (living to like 120+) and that will be the thing that finally kills them.


Exactly. The problem is though, when exposing yourself to carcinogens (tobacco, certain medications, etc etc), you're basically taking more and more punches at DNA, and eventually, with the chances of carcinogenesis occuring getting higher and higher, it actually happens (there has to be like 4 major breaks at the same time for it to happen, like one coding for the lysosome to kill the cell, and other backups). I didn't know the sun was that important to our health though. Sort of an odd situation . Yeah, skin cancer isn't so dangerous nowadays, but I GUESS back in the day when cancer was still pretty unknown and treatment options were limited, skin cancer was pretty dangerous. Which is why dermatologists told us how evil sunlight was . But it does make sence, now that skin cancer is no real big threat as long as it's taken care of in a decent amount of time, that we can venture into the sun again.

Quote:

This same moderate exposure protects our bodies from not only organ melanomas, but SKIN melanomas as well. Funny isn't it? The same dose of sunlight that causes harmless skin cancers actually prevents deadly skin cancers. So, which is it? Is UV a carcinogen or an anti-carcinogen? I believe that the answer is, like most everything else in our environment, both too little AND too much is unhealthy. So when the so-called "experts" start telling us to completely avoid something (and I don't mean toxins like lead or arsenic, lol) it raises a red flag for me. Bad science can do a lot of harm. As far as being fair-skinned and unable to tolerate the exposure goes? I'm sad for you. Not only does it almost completely clear up KP, but it is difficult to get the right amount of vitamin D in supplement form. Best of luck to you. -Laura

That's a good point. It's kind of ironic. Your mentioning of arsenic reminds me of an important topic I need to make.

Your last paragraph kinda felt like a sucker punch but I'm sure you didn't mean it like that . Anyway thanks for the good wishes. Where do you reccomend I get my vitamin D from? Besides the sun? I get some sunlight every sunday and every other week at work, and getting the mail every day (have to walk a block to get it). My calcium tablets contain 250 IU of vitamin D (as cholecalciferol). What, by the way, is an IU? What do you reccomend as a vitamin D supplement, like what mimics the sun the best?

Regards

Oh yeah, I plan to get off the minocycline soon (antibiotic for acne). I'm just so afraid if I stop, it'l come back with a vengeance!! It's not good to be on it very long as it kills healthy Esterechia Coli colonies in the intestine, and other bacteria. I hate P. Acne though...

Hey, how many IU of Vitamin D would one get with 10 minutes of sun exposure? This is wearing a short sleeved shirt, a hat, and pants. just wondering.

I promise, I very much didn't intend it as a sucker punch . It's a shame that we can't actually share voice intonation and body language in our posts too. I wish I had more information on the correct levels of Vitamin D. As stated by others, the experts can't seem to agree. I do however know that there is a risk of toxicity if too much is consumed. That is why it is ideal to increase your levels naturally with sunlight and I'm fortunate enough to have that option open to me. There is a link to a table with Vitamin D recommendations below. (It's posted just over half the way down the linked page.)

What are the health risks of too much vitamin D?

Vitamin D toxicity can cause nausea, vomiting, poor appetite, constipation, weakness, and weight loss. It can also raise blood levels of calcium, causing mental status changes such as confusion. High blood levels of calcium also can cause heart rhythm abnormalities. Calcinosis, the deposition of calcium and phosphate in the body's soft tissues such as the kidney, can also be caused by vitamin D toxicity.

Sun exposure is unlikely to result in vitamin D toxicity. Diet is also unlikely to cause vitamin D toxicity, unless large amounts of cod liver oil are consumed. Vitamin D toxicity is much more likely to occur from high intakes of vitamin D in supplements. The Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine has set the tolerable upper intake level (UL) for vitamin D at 25 ?g (1,000 IU) for infants up to 12 months of age and 50 ?g (2,000 IU) for children, adults, pregnant, and lactating women. Long term intakes above the UL increase the risk of adverse health effects. Upper intake levels for vitamin D are listed in micrograms and International Units for infants, children, and adults in Table 3.

Table 3:

Best of luck... truly -Laura

(Oh! BTW? an IU is an international unit. )

Denise, I am so happy that I came across your post about conquering KP. I will definitely try the calcium supplements but I guess I would have to go through Douglas Labs.......I am wanting the purest form of supplements. Also, at what dosage should I start my 11 y.o. on since she is starting to show signs of this disease on her thighs and arms?

Thanks Alicia

I think diet and nutrition can probably help some people, so it is worth a try for sure. But many people here are very health conscious and follow excellent diets with supplements and have had no success with their KP. Even if they've followed it for years, it doesn't seem to make a difference.

However, with KP most people have *years* of dead skin buildup, so if you could exfoliate all of that and clear it up, then start again with the diet factors, that would be the ultimate proof if it would be enough to keep the KP away.
I doubt that diet alone would be enough to tackle the problem, as no amount of dietary supplements will cause your skin to start exfoliating all of the old, dead debris that is clogging everything.
I personally am not willing to change my whole life and eating habits around for that kind of trial. I guess I am spoiled on the ease of using the treatment I've found for my KP.

But it sounds like from your initial description that your KP was quite labile to begin with and would change depending on what you were doing, so maybe if you have the kind of KP that is that changeable, this therapy would work.
Most people don't seem to be in that boat, though, as their KP is just there forever and is pretty unresponsive to behavioral/diet changes.

For mine personally, nothing ever really affected it. It just sat there for years on end and would worsen in the winter time. Only with daily chemical exfoliation did I find an effective therapy that treated the old debris and could also keep up with the new dead skin that is accumulated every day.

Thanks for the information! I also do oil pulling. It helps alot. And use Tretinoin. But, if you ever use Tretinion, don't use it on your face everyday!!! It's EVIL! And itches... =3

Can you please write down the exact ingredients, how much and in what form they are? I searched on Douglas Labs website but I couldn´t find that information...

The exact ingredients of what?

Douglas Labs - Extra Strength Natural Calcium/Magnesium Complex

Fabio...I got my Tretinoin-cream today. (0,05%). Do you have any suggestions how to use it? Have you had good results? Also with the redness?

I just went to Vitamin Shoppe and bought the Calcium Citrate with Magnesium and Vitamin D. This should be good, right? Also, how do I know if it's hard or soft calcium? I don't understand?

Thanks...........

For those who've been trying the advice of Denise: Is it possible that it gets worse before it gets better? Because I've been trying the calcium supplements for a few days (not even a week) and the KP is worse. I use supplements with calcium, magnesium and zinc, plus vitamine D and omega 3. The vitamine D and omega 3 I use for over a month. Can anyone help me? Because I don't know what to do: continue or stop?

Thanks!!!