Cheryl, thank you for sending this article.  I have read Michael Holick's 
book, The UV Advantage,and found it helpful in calculating how much sun is 
"safe sun" depending on one's skin color and latitude of dwelling.

He has charts that show how much time one should be in the sun before 
applying sunscreen at different times of the year, different times of day, 
and different places in the world where she lives or vacations.  One 
suggestion that made sense to me is that if one is going on vacation to a 
climate that is much sunnier than she lives in she should prepare ahead of 
time by gradually getting some protective melanin from sunshine.  Another 
topic that was addressed was weekend sunning.  If one works indoors all 
week and goes to the lake or works in the yard on the weekend she can get 
too much sun exposure.

He suggests that with the coming of spring and more sunlight one should 
begin building up her skin protection as the sunlight becomes more direct. 
After reading this book I felt that I had information that will guide me 
toward responsible, healthful sunlight benefit. We are supposed to 
establish a healthful level of vitamin D (all kinds) in the summer so that 
we are protected throughout the winter.  And, of course, we then pass along 
our vitamin D in the water soluble part of our breastmilk.

I was surprised to read about his censure by his department. He does 
approve of the *responsible* use of tanning beds to address the above risks 
of over-exposure when one abruptly changes her usual level of sunlight.  He 
sees a vacation or weekend sunburn as the long-term risk. I suspect that he 
is a sacrifice to resistance to change such as we often see when someone 
goes against the common consensus.

With the decrease in ozone protection we do have to be less carefree than 
we were as children but we can educate ourselves as to the healthful 
approach to sunlight and its many important health benefits. You would be 
surprised at all of the illnesses that are likely linked to vitamin D 
deficiency.

I want to re-read Cynthia's articles.  I had copies stored in my files 
until an evil spyware invaded my system.  Bad stuff!!

Patricia Gima, IBCLC
Milwaukee, Wisconsin

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