What If Your Fear of the Sun Is Actually Hurting You?

We’ve been taught to fear the sun—to avoid its rays, slather on SPF, wear long sleeves, and shield our eyes with sunglasses. But what if this fear is doing more harm than good? What if, by avoiding sunlight, we’re actually increasing our risk of chronic disease, disrupting our hormones, and weakening one of our body’s most powerful healing tools?

The truth is, your body is built to work with light, especially sunlight. But due to modern habits, we're using it all wrong.

The Eyes: Your Light-Based Operating System

One of the biggest misconceptions is that the sun harms the eyes. In reality, it’s often the absence of natural light—and the overexposure to artificial blue light—that damages them.

Your eyes aren’t just for seeing. They are primary sensors that tell your body what time of day it is, what hormones to release, when to sleep, and even how your skin should respond to UV exposure.

In the morning, when unfiltered sunlight enters your eyes (without sunglasses, contacts, or windows), it activates the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN)—the master clock in your brain. This sets your circadian rhythm, which governs sleep-wake cycles, metabolism, immune function, and cellular repair.

This light signal also:

·         Stimulates dopamine in the retina, crucial for mood and eye development

·         Promotes melanocyte-stimulating hormone, which preps your skin to handle UV light later in the day (WE ARE AMAZING!)

·         Regulates melatonin production for restful sleep at night

·         Supports pupil function, mood, alertness, and thyroid hormone rhythms

Without morning light, the body's systems drift out of sync. Add in excessive exposure to artificial blue light (from screens, LEDs, and indoor bulbs), and we create retinal inflammation, melatonin suppression, and even increased risk of macular degeneration and sleep disorders.

The Skin: Your Solar Panel

Most people think of skin as a protective barrier but it's also a light-sensing, energy-producing organ. With proper timing and exposure, your skin can:

·         Produce vitamin D from UVB light, which supports calcium metabolism, immune function, and gene expression

·         Create cholesterol sulfate, a molecule crucial for vascular and immune health

·         Release nitric oxide under UVA exposure, which helps lower blood pressure and improve circulation

·         Absorb red and infrared light, which builds exclusion zone (EZ) water in your cells—a key player in mitochondrial energy production.

But none of this happens optimally if your body hasn’t been primed by early morning sunlight through the eyes. This is why midday sunburns or sun sensitivities are often worse for people who’ve been indoors all morning or who skipped eye-based circadian entrainment.

Melanin: More Than Just Pigment

Melanin is often viewed as just pigment—but it’s far more. It acts like a biological battery, absorbing UV and infrared light and converting it into usable DC electric current, which fuels mitochondrial processes in the skin and other tissues. This is nature’s built-in “sunscreen” and energy converter- activated by proper sun exposure at the right times.

Without regular, progressive sun exposure, we don’t build our “solar callous.” Just like muscles adapt to strength training, your skin adapts to sunlight when given time and consistency. Hiding from the sun actually weakens this adaptive process.

DHA: The Missing Link in Light Metabolism

To make full use of light, your body needs DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), an omega-3 fat found in cold water seafood. DHA is highly concentrated in the retina and skin, where it helps:

·         Convert photons into electric signals for circadian signaling and mitochondrial energy

·         Maintain cell membrane fluidity, which optimizes mitochondrial function

·         Enable proper light transduction, which affects mood, cognition, and repair.

Without enough DHA—and with a diet high in seed oils and processed foods—your skin and eyes are less able to absorb and convert sunlight effectively. See your quantum wellness dietitian for more help with your diet!

The Irony of Modern Skin Cancer Fears

Yes, too much UV light can be harmful—especially when the body isn’t prepared. But data shows something surprising:

·         Melanomas often appear on areas that rarely see the sun, like the back or thighs—not on the face or hands

·         Outdoor workers have lower rates of melanoma than indoor workers

·         A 30-year Swedish study found that women who avoided the sun had twice the risk of all-cause mortality compared to those who sought sunlight—similar to the risk of smoking.

Those who avoid the sun have more chronic disease such as: diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, cancer and even weight challenges. So, instead of avoiding all sunlight, we need to relearn how to engage with it properly.

How to Build Your Solar Resilience (a.k.a. Your “Solar Callous”)

You wouldn’t walk into a gym and deadlift 300 pounds your first day—so don’t treat sun exposure the same way. Build it up (first discuss with medical care team knowledgeable in this area):

·         Begin with early morning sunlight, 5–15 minutes to the eyes and skin (no glasses, windows, or sunscreen).

·         Expose your skin gradually, starting with short midday sessions and increasing with the seasons.

·         Eat DHA-rich foods like sardines, salmon, and mackerel to enhance your skin’s ability to convert light to energy.

·         Ground yourself barefoot outdoors to balance charge and reduce oxidative stress during sun exposure.

·         Avoid artificial blue light at night, which confuses your body and shuts down repair mechanisms.

Light Isn’t the Enemy — It's a Forgotten Ally

We are not designed to live in constant fluorescent lighting, behind glass, shielded from Earth and sky. Your eyes, skin, and mitochondria are solar-powered by design. When you fear the sun, you deny your body access to one of its most powerful regulators of healing, immunity, and energy.

Light isn't toxic. Mismatched light is.
The key is to reconnect with natural light rhythms, prepare your body with the right timing and nutrition, and reclaim what nature already built into you.

Resources:

Lindqvist, P. G., et al. (2016). Avoidance of sun exposure is a risk factor for all-cause mortality: results from the Melanoma in Southern Sweden cohort. J Intern Med, 280(4), 375–387. https://doi.org/10.1111/joim.12496

Diffey, B. L. (2010). An overview analysis of the time people spend outdoors. Br J Dermatol, 164(4), 848–854. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2133.2010.10153.x

Juzeniene, A., & Moan, J. (2012). Beneficial effects of UV radiation other than via vitamin D production. Dermato-Endocrinology, 4(2), 109–117.

Holick, M. F. (2007). Vitamin D Deficiency. N Engl J Med, 357, 266–281.

Turnbull, D. J., et al. (2010). Influence of skin type on ultraviolet exposure patterns. Photodermatol Photoimmunol Photomed, 26(3), 157–163.