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Sunlight allows us to make vitamin D, credited with healthier living, but a surprise research finding could reveal another powerful benefit of getting some sun.
Georgetown University Medical Center researchers have found that sunlight, through a mechanism separate than vitamin D production, energizes T cells that play a central role in human immunity.
Their findings, published today in Scientific Reports, suggest how the skin, the body's largest organ, stays alert to the many microbes that can nest there.
"We all know sunlight provides vitamin D, which is suggested to have an impact on immunity, among other things. But what we found is a completely separate role of sunlight on immunity," says the study's senior investigator, Gerard Ahern, PhD, associate professor in the Georgetown's Department of Pharmacology and Physiology. "Some of the roles attributed to vitamin D on immunity may be due to this new mechanism."
They specifically found that low levels of blue light, found in sun rays, makes T cells move faster -- marking the first reported human cell responding to sunlight by speeding its pace.
Bad news for our basement-dwelling brethren.
(Score: 2) by choose another one on Tuesday December 27 2016, @12:35PM
Check out (e.g. google: vit d without vit k) the fairly wide range of research on Vit K (and specifically K2) being necessary along with Vit D and maybe don't supplement D alone (leading to arterial calcification and various other nasty stuff).
I am stuffed either way - with multiple auto-immune conditions, the last thing I want to do is "energize" my immune system, it's already trying to kill me. However I am also low on Vit D, so in theory I should supplement, but I am on warfarin so can't take Vit K so shouldn't supplement D...
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 27 2016, @04:09PM
it's probably trying to kill you for a good reason. doctors always want to blame the immune system instead of themselves for not knowing why. there's probably something wrong with what it is attacking. attacking synapses(ms)? probably something in the synapse coating that isn't supposed to be there, etc. chemicals from poison "food" that crossed the BBB, for example. just b/c doctors don't know how to check for it doesn't mean it's not there. i'm not saying that all autoimmune disease is not real, only that i doubt it's always the genes and immune system at fault. the med industry always wants to say you were just born defective when they can't/won't dig any deeper to find the real cause of the "misbehaving" immune system.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Tuesday December 27 2016, @04:40PM
the TSA is groping you for a good reason. bleeding heart liberals always want to blame the authority system instead of themselves for not knowing why. there's probably something wrong with what it is groping. groping crotches (och?) probably something in the crotch coating that isn't supposed to be there, etc. schedule 1 residue from poison "drugs" that crossed the border, for example. just b/c lawyers don't know how to check for it doesn't mean it's not there. i'm not saying that all legal recreational drug use is not real, only that i doubt it's always the airport security screeners at fault. the legal industry always wants to say you were just born defective when they can't/won't dig any deeper to find the real cause of the "misbehaving" crime system.
There are plenty of examples of reactive systems that overreact. You just need to look a little for them.
(Score: 2) by Azuma Hazuki on Tuesday December 27 2016, @05:07PM
I can't take K, or likely shouldn't, due to a bizarre and unprovoked clot a couple of years ago. The B-complex and Mg citrate are there to shepherd the calcium the D3 will start throwing around the system and prevent it from depositing on the vessel walls, I was told. Is menaquinone (vitamin K2, M4/7 types) also necessary?
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
(Score: 2) by choose another one on Wednesday December 28 2016, @03:10PM
The key is apparently Matrix GLA Protein (MGP), which is K/K2 dependent (the body can make K2 from K so if you have plenty of K you don't need extra K2, in theory). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18841280 [nih.gov]
I am K deficient, since that is the way my anticoagulation works, can't do anything about that.
(Score: 2) by Azuma Hazuki on Wednesday December 28 2016, @05:37PM
Can you get off warfarin and onto apixaban (Eliquis)? That stuff's way safer, and you don't need to watch your diet. It blocks factor Xa (activated factor X) instead of screwing around with your Vitamin K levels.
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
(Score: 2) by choose another one on Wednesday December 28 2016, @07:20PM
Wish I could, but it is not researched or approved/licenced for my condition (antiphospholipid syndrome) and my current doctors won't prescribe it (or rivaroxaban which was the one I initially tried for rather than warfarin). Rivaroxaban has now been tested, but only for a subset of patients and I don't fit the criteria. At the rate they are doing the work it looks like I could be on warfarin for a long time, and you're right it's a pain in the proverbial, affects diet, alcohol, cross reacts with practically every other drug, needs regular blood testing, and screws up vitamin levels, but it is probably better than having more strokes.
(Score: 2) by Azuma Hazuki on Wednesday December 28 2016, @08:46PM
I'm not a doctor, but based on the symptoms, there's no particular reason apixaban wouldn't help here from the looks of it. I know the newer Xa inhibitors are contraindicated for cases of heart valve patients, but this looks to be purely organic. The only possible downside I can see is there doesn't seem to be an antidote to the NOAC class.
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...