My Paranoia might not be wholey unfounded???

All this summer I have faced the dilemma of just how necessary 30+ SPF really is.  I am extremely suspicious that it might just be the sunscreen that will do me in in the end (but of course then it wouldn't be skin cancer, right?)  And sure, I don't want tons of wrinkles and to look 147 years old -- but I live in Michigan!  With the exception of the few summer days when the planets perfectly align (I have a day off, the sun is out, it isn't too hot, hot, hot to be outside, and I am actually outside), most of my skin is covered up most of the time.

And without the sunlight hitting skin, bodies don't make Vitamin D.  Many of you know how important this vitamin is to calcium absorption (essential) but you may not know that our bodies are much more efficient at making Vitamin D we can actually use than it is absorbing the Vitamin D that comes from the drug store.

Strong bones are important -- really important!  But this study suggests that strong bones might just be the tip of the iceberg for what Vitamin D does. 

The researchers found 2,776 binding sites for the vitamin D receptor along the length of the genome. These were unusually concentrated near a number of genes associated with susceptibility to autoimmune conditions such as MS, Crohn's disease, systemic lupus erythematosus (or 'lupus') and rheumatoid arthritis, and to cancers such as chronic lymphocytic leukaemia and colorectal cancer.

It's not a done deal -- these are merely associations right now, so don't run off to a nudest colony in the Bahama's and try to get your HSA to pay for it.  Just give it some thought and keep your eyes and ears open for further research.

What are we doing to our children???

I am sure most of you have heard that Type 2 Diabetes (what used to be called Adult Onset Diabetes) is on the rise in children.  (Type 2 is the one where the cells in the pancreas that produce insulin just wear out because they have had to deal with so much sugar).  So...with all of the sugar in the American diet, children are wearing out their pancreas at younger and younger ages.  That is bad enough...

However, a new study suggests children (kids ages 7-11 ... so really! we are talking about young kids) with poor blood sugar regulation have 4-5% less bone mass.  This is the age kids should be building bones!  How are they going to be able to avoid having hip and wrist fractures at 50, let alone 70, if they have weaker bones at 11.

This makes me want to cry and gets me MAD all at once!!!  We are choosing to let our children drink sodas (that contribute to the diabetes)!  We are not encouraging them to drink milk (to provide the calcium and vitamin D necessary to build strong bones)!!  We are not MAKING them go outside and run around (to stimulate bone formation AND to make their bodies more sensitive to insulin in the first place)!!  We are not doing these things for ourselves (not modeling the behavior) and we are not creating an environment where they have to participate in the decisions that will allow them to grow up healthy and strong!!

What is wrong with us?  Are you mad about this?  Are you doing something about it in your own home?  Are you setting a good example for the kids who wouldn't otherwise have one???