The happy vitamin

Sunshine releases endorphins, increases blood flow and boosts productivity. No wonder people who spend a lot of time in one of Switzerland’s sunniest spots are so happy!

We’re all so worried about the health implications of sunbathing without sunscreen that we often forget the benefits the sun’s rays bring us. When exposed to direct sunlight, our bodies create vitamin D, which boosts our immune system and keeps our bones, muscles and teeth strong and healthy. The ‘sunshine vitamin’ also brightens our mood and eases pain. Light also has a bigger impact on our sleep/wake cycle, hormone levels and body temperature than any other factor.

Other living organisms are also able to convert a substance stored in the skin cells into vitamin D when exposed to UVB rays. That explains how we’re able to rely on the animals and plants we eat to provide us with some of our daily recommended intake. But the bottom line is that we still rely on natural sunlight to produce as much as 90% of the vitamin D our bodies need. And we have to get out in the fresh air to feel the benefits: the process doesn’t work through a window. Depending on your skin type, you’ll need to expose your hands, your face and parts of your arms and legs to the sun’s rays for between five and 25 minutes a day to produce enough vitamin D. After that, it’s time to cover up or apply sun cream with a high SPF.

There was probably an awful lot that Swiss doctor Oscar Bernhard didn’t know about vitamins and sun protection when he invented sunlight therapy. But with over 300 days of sunshine a year in the Engadin, it’s no wonder that a doctor from this high Alpine valley region came up with the idea of using sunlight to cure ailments at the start of the 20th century. Bernhard’s heliotherapy caused quite a stir in the wider world, but was met with resistance closer to home in St. Moritz.