Study: Sunlight Lowers Blood Pressure
Scottish researchers believe that one of the reasons sunlight feels so good is that it lowers your blood pressure.
Scottish researchers believe that one of the reasons sunlight feels so good is that it lowers your blood pressure.
With the help of 24 volunteers they were able to identify a compound that’s released into blood vessels when UV A rays hit the skin.
The substance is called nitric oxide and it helps get blood flowing.
In the study, the participants were put into tanning beds twice – once with the UVA rays at full force and once with them blocked, leaving only the heat generated by the bulbs.
In each case they were in them long enough to mimic having been in the afternoon sun for a half an hour.
After both trials their blood pressure was checked, and following the UVA test the subjects experienced a 5-point drop.
Heat alone produced no changes in the readings.
Of course, exposure to UVA rays is also linked to skin cancer, premature aging, and surface growths, but the study’s authors feel these potential problems are secondary to their blood pressure lowering abilities.
Said one of them, "We suspect that the benefits to heart health of sunlight will outweigh the risk of skin cancer."
Scottish researchers believe that one of the reasons sunlight feels so good is that it lowers your blood pressure.
With the help of 24 volunteers they were able to identify a compound that’s released into blood vessels when UV A rays hit the skin.
The substance is called nitric oxide and it helps get blood flowing.
In the study, the participants were put into tanning beds twice – once with the UVA rays at full force and once with them blocked, leaving only the heat generated by the bulbs.
In each case they were in them long enough to mimic having been in the afternoon sun for a half an hour.
After both trials their blood pressure was checked, and following the UVA test the subjects experienced a 5-point drop.
Heat alone produced no changes in the readings.
Of course, exposure to UVA rays is also linked to skin cancer, premature aging, and surface growths, but the study’s authors feel these potential problems are secondary to their blood pressure lowering abilities.
Said one of them, "We suspect that the benefits to heart health of sunlight will outweigh the risk of skin cancer."